As a high schooler, if you’re thinking of an accessible way to explore entrepreneurship or starting your own venture, consider an online entrepreneurship program. An online entrepreneurship program will introduce you to the basics of launching and managing a business and help you build practical skills in financial literacy, strategic planning, market research, and innovative thinking.
You’ll learn how to come up with ideas, test them in real-world settings, and present your work clearly. Whether you’re interested in tech, fashion, sports, or social change, entrepreneurship programs can help you explore how business connects with what you care about.
To help you get started, here’s our list of 15 online entrepreneurship programs for high school students!
15 Online Entrepreneurship Programs for High School Students
1. Ladder Internships
Cost: Starting at $2,490 (financial aid available)
Application Deadline: May 11 for the summer cohort
Dates: Multiple cohorts throughout the year, including Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter.
Eligibility: Students who can work for 10-20 hours/week, for 8-12 weeks. Open to high school students, and gap year students!
Ladder Internships is an eight-week virtual program where you work with early-stage startups in fields like AI and machine learning, health tech, journalism, marketing, and consulting. You join a startup team and work on real projects that show how startups operate, make decisions, and solve problems.
You take on responsibilities in areas like market research, product development, and communication. A Ladder Coach and startup manager guide your work, but you’re expected to take initiative and manage tasks on your own. You finish the internship by presenting your work to the startup’s leadership.
2. Young Founders Lab
Cost: Financial aid is available
Application Deadline: May 11
Dates: June 2 (Individual Program); June 9-29 (Group Program, Summer 1); August 4-24 (Group Program, Summer 2)
Eligibility: All high school students (grades 9–12) are eligible to join the program, with no prior entrepreneurship experience required.
The Young Founders Lab is a virtual business incubator where you learn how to build a startup from the ground up. You will work through all the major steps of entrepreneurship, including finding a problem, testing ideas, building a business model, and thinking about how to make money.
You complete assignments every two weeks, read case studies, and get one-on-one support from real startup founders. You also work on customer research, financial planning, and building a pitch. At the end, you present your idea to investors and get feedback on your work.
3. Entrepreneurship: From Idea to Early Design, Columbia Pre College Online
Cost: $2,815 per session
Application Deadline: April 20
Dates: August 11 to August 15
Eligibility: Applicants must be high school students currently enrolled in grades 9–12 with a broad interest in entrepreneurship and business.
Entrepreneurship: From Idea to Early Design is an online course from Columbia University’s Pre-College Programs. You learn how to develop business ideas by solving real customer or community problems using design thinking. The course teaches you how to define problems from the customer’s perspective, do field research, and analyze current market options.
You gather data through interviews and surveys, use it to shape possible solutions, and then build and test a minimal viable product. You learn how to analyze feedback and measure whether your idea meets the needs of your target audience.
4. Summer@Brown Online
Cost: Ranges from $3,218 to $6,238
Application Deadline: May 9
Dates: June 16 to July 25
Eligibility: Applicants must be students completing grades 9 to 12, ages 14 to 18 by June 15
Summer@Brown Online, offered by Brown University, includes business and entrepreneurship courses that cover topics like finance, economics, accounting, and strategy. You can choose from courses such as Introduction to Accounting, Mathematical Modeling of Finance, and Behavioral Game Theory.
These courses teach you how to read financial statements, use math in financial decisions, and analyze competitive business situations. The program is structured in asynchronous or mostly asynchronous formats, giving you flexibility while keeping the academic standards high.
5. Online Entrepreneurship Course | USC Pre-College
Cost: $1990 USD + $35 application fee
Application Deadline: Not mentioned
Dates: Various Start dates and the program is self-paced according to the student
Eligibility: Students must be at least 14 years old or older and enrolled in a high school or secondary program
Entrepreneurship: Exploring What It Takes to Create Your Own Business is a self-paced online course from the University of Southern California (USC) Pre-College Online program. You learn the basics of starting and running a business, including how to evaluate business models, study market size, understand customer needs, and find a competitive edge.
The course covers topics like value creation, ethical leadership, financial planning, and team motivation. You complete 20 to 25 hours of recorded lectures, case studies, and assignments over two to four weeks. You also work on building a pitch strategy and explore how small businesses operate through real examples and industry spotlights.
6. Babson Summer Study for High School Students
Cost: $6,295 (+ $95 application fee)
Application Deadline: February 14
Dates: July 7- July 28
Eligibility: Applicants must be a rising high school junior or senior, scheduled to graduate in the next two years, and be at least 16 by the start date of the program.
Babson Summer Study, hosted by Babson College, is a 3+ week program focused on developing entrepreneurial skills through the course EPS 1110: Introduction to the Entrepreneurial Experience. You will explore real-world challenges using the United Nations Global Goals as a framework and apply entrepreneurial thinking to create solutions.
You will build communication and teamwork skills while learning about finance, marketing, leadership, and venture development. Throughout the program, Babson faculty and academic mentors guide you as you work on a social impact project using Babson’s Entrepreneurial Thought & Action approach.
7. Economics for Leaders, Foundation for Teaching Economics (FTE)
Cost: $900 for virtual program
Application Deadline: April 30
Dates: Various dates from June 2 to Aug 8
Eligibility: Students who are currently in their sophomore or junior year of high school are eligible to apply. Students who are in their freshman or senior year of high school are not eligible.
Economics for Leaders, offered by the Foundation for Teaching Economics, is a selective summer program focused on improving decision-making and leadership through economic reasoning. You will learn how to analyze public policy issues using economic concepts like opportunity cost, market dynamics, government intervention, and international trade.
The program also explores the impact of institutions, incentives, and property rights on economic outcomes. The curriculum combines these concepts with leadership development, based on a university-level Leadership Pyramid Matrix, to help you build personal, relational, and contextual leadership skills.
8. Moneyball FLEX – Wharton Global Youth Program
Cost: $2,099
Application Deadline: Spring: March 6; Summer priority: April 2; Summer final: May 1
Dates: Spring: Mach 30 to April 27; Summer: June 22 to July 27
Eligibility: High school students currently enrolled in grades 9–12 with strong math skills and an interest in sports. International applicants are welcome.
Moneyball FLEX is a four-week online program from Wharton that teaches sports analytics, statistical reasoning, and coding in R. It’s a solid choice if you’re interested in sports entrepreneurship, where data shapes business models, fan engagement, and performance.
You’ll learn how to design data projects, analyze real-world datasets, and critique statistics. These skills help with finding market gaps, testing ideas, and making smart business decisions. The program includes live sessions with Wharton Professor Adi Wyner, guidance from Penn undergraduates, and talks from industry experts.
9. Future of the Business World – Wharton Global Youth Program
Cost: $4,099
Application Deadline: May 1
Dates: Session 1: Jun 16 – Jun 27; Session 2: Jul 7 – Jul 18; Session 3: Jul 21 – Aug 1
Eligibility: High school students currently enrolled in grades 9–12 with a broad interest in business and a desire to explore various business pathways.
Future of the Business World, offered by the Wharton Global Youth Program at the University of Pennsylvania, is a two-week online course that teaches key business ideas through design thinking, scenario planning, and teamwork. You will learn how to respond to global challenges using business frameworks taught in Wharton classrooms.
The course includes interactive lectures and business simulations, where you apply what you learn to real-world problems. You’ll work on group projects and discussions, explore future business topics, and improve your critical thinking, communication, and teamwork skills. The course ends with a project where you predict trends in the business world.
10. Harvard Pre-College Program: Business and Leadership
Cost: $5,800 per session (Financial aid available) + $75 non-refundable application fee
Program Dates: Session I: June 22 – July 3; Session II: July 6 – July 18; Session III: July 20 – August 1
Application Deadline: Typically in April
Eligibility: Rising juniors and seniors
Harvard University’s Pre-College Program in Business and Leadership is a two-week online course designed to introduce you to business strategy, communication, and leadership from an entrepreneurial perspective. With guidance from Harvard instructors, you will analyze case studies, pitch ideas, practice negotiation, and build public speaking skills. You will also learn market research, data interpretation, and strategic planning, which are key tools for identifying opportunities and making decisions as a future entrepreneur.
11. Cornell University Online Pre-College Summer Programs
Cost: $1,840 per credit
Program Dates: Session 1: June 2 – June 20; Session 2: June 23 – July 11; Session 3: July 14 – August 1; Six-Week Session: June 23 – August 1
Application Deadlines: May 5 (Session 1); May 19 (Session 2 & Six-Week Session); June 16 (Session 3)
Eligibility: High school students (grades 11–12) with strong academic performance and a passion for business
Cornell’s Online Pre-College Summer Programs let you explore business through a university-level curriculum while earning college credit from home. If you’re interested in entrepreneurship, courses like Introduction to Business Management, Global Business Strategy, and Strategic Management of Tech & Innovation offer a deep dive into how businesses launch, scale, and compete.
You’ll gain practical tools for decision-making, innovation management, and strategy development—key areas for any aspiring founder. Classes are taught by Cornell faculty, and you’ll also have access to virtual field trips, guest lectures, and networking events that help connect theory to industry. The flexibility of the online format allows you to build your schedule while completing rigorous coursework and receiving an official Cornell transcript.
12. Wake Forest’s Business Strategy & Innovation
Cost: $1,495 per course
Application Deadline: Rolling basis
Dates: Multiple 2- and 4-week sessions available year-round
Eligibility: High school students completing grades 9–12, ages 13+
Wake Forest’s Business Strategy & Innovation course helps you understand entrepreneurship by focusing on how companies create value and adapt to change. You will study real-world case studies from companies like Netflix and Apple, diving into strategic decision-making, innovation, and competitive analysis.
The course is led by experienced professionals, including former CEO Dr. Dan Fogel and business leader Lee Weiss, who share practical insights into building and scaling businesses. You’ll work on projects, evaluate business models, and learn to think critically about new venture opportunities.
13. Entrepreneurship Course | Pre-College Program | Georgetown University
Cost: $1,795
Application Deadline: Various deadlines depending on the program dates, May 11, May 25, June 1 and so on
Dates: Various dates from May onwards till June and July
Eligibility: Applicants must be students aged 13 and up
Becoming an Entrepreneur: An Inside Look at Innovation is an online course from Georgetown University that introduces the main steps involved in starting and growing a business. You learn how to define a market problem, identify your target customers, and build a business model around that need. The course covers how to test product ideas, create a brand, and present your work through storytelling and pitching.
You complete hands-on assignments like writing a business pitch and outlining a launch plan. The course explores how entrepreneurs handle failure, adapt to change, and lead teams. You also learn about different business structures, including non-profit, for-profit, and social enterprise, and consider how entrepreneurship might connect to your goals.
14. Creating Change through Social Entrepreneurship | Yale University and Coursera
Cost: Free to enroll, but certificate courses are chargeable
Application Deadline: Flexible schedule. You can enroll anytime.
Dates: Self paced, will take 16 hours to complete at 3 weeks at 5 hours a week
Eligibility: All applicants are welcome to apply
Creating Change through Social Entrepreneurship, offered online by Yale University on Coursera, teaches you how to build ventures that address social or environmental problems. You start by defining a real-world issue, working with affected communities, and using user-centered design to develop a practical solution.
You also learn how to build a business model, measure social impact, and plan for financial sustainability. Topics include revenue strategies, funding options, organizational structure, and how to communicate your idea through a business pitch. Case studies featuring Yale alumni and social entrepreneurs show how small ideas can grow into larger initiatives.
Image source – Georgetown University