14 Internships for High School Students in Houston, Texas
If you are looking to gain early work experience during high school, internships can be a structured way to explore your interests. Through an internship, you can build practical skills, understand how professional environments function, and see what different careers look like on a daily basis while gaining exposure to mentors and professionals in fields you are curious about. Depending on the program, you might explore areas such as medicine, engineering, technology, finance, research, or community-based work.
Why should you intern in Houston, Texas?
Houston, Texas, is home to major universities, research centers, and organizations that offer year-round internships for high school students. These programs let you work on a wide range of activities, including lab research, healthcare projects, nonprofit initiatives, data-driven work, and education-focused roles. Whether you are a local student or considering spending your summer in the city, Houston offers access to a broad professional network across multiple industries.
To make the search easier, we’ve narrowed things down to 14 internships for high school students in Houston, Texas.
If you are looking for free online programs, check out our blog here.
1. Partnership for Careers in Cancer Science and Medicine (PCCSM)
Location: The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Stipend: $7,200
Acceptance Rate: Highly selective
Dates: June 1 – August 7
Application Deadline: November 17 – January 14
Eligibility: Houston-area high school and undergrad students who are at least 18 years old
The Partnership for Careers in Cancer Science and Medicine (PCCSM) is a research-focused internship that introduces you to scientific and medical career paths through mentored work in cancer research. You’ll be placed in a research environment where you’ll contribute to a defined project, which may involve laboratory, computational, or community-based research methods. Early training sessions cover foundational concepts, including research ethics, experimental techniques, and cancer biology. The experience concludes with presenting your findings in a formal research format, helping you practice translating complex work into clear scientific summaries.
2. Ladder Internships
Location: Virtual
Cost: Varies by program (financial aid available)
Acceptance Rate: Selective
Dates: Several cohorts year-round
Application Deadline: Varies by cohort. You can apply here.
Eligibility: High school students
Ladder Internships offers virtual internships where you work on real projects with startups and organizations across diverse industries. You’ll select an area of interest, such as technology, biotechnology, media, or engineering, and contribute to tasks that are meaningful to the host company’s goals. Throughout the internship, you’ll engage regularly with both a company mentor and a Ladder Coach to refine your work and develop professional habits like time management and effective communication. Your project work will often produce a tangible deliverable that you can reference in future applications or portfolios.
3. Carl B. & Florence E. King Foundation High School Summer Program in Biomedical Sciences
Location: The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Stipend: $7,200
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Highly selective; Up to 6 students
Dates: June 1 – August 7
Application Deadline: January 14
Eligibility: Texas high school seniors (18+) who have been accepted into a university or college
The Carl B. & Florence E. King Foundation High School Summer Program in Biomedical Sciences will place you directly into biomedical research environments at a major medical center in Houston. As a participant, you’ll work full-time in a laboratory under faculty supervision, contributing to an active research project while learning core principles that guide scientific investigation. Most of your time will be spent on hands-on lab work, giving you a realistic view of daily research responsibilities and expectations. You’ll also participate in seminars and program-wide activities that introduce various biomedical disciplines and research topics. The program concludes with formal presentations in which you communicate your work clearly to an academic audience.
4. NASA High School Aerospace Scholars (HAS)
Location: Virtual/Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance rate: Moderately selective for the online portion; highly selective for residential
Dates: Year-long
Application Deadline: September 27
Eligibility: High school students who live in Texas
HAS begins with an interactive online course focused on space exploration and STEM. It runs from October to March and culminates in a mission-planning project. High-performing students are then selected for a five-day residential experience at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. During the residential portion, you’ll work in teams to design and build prototypes for Mars exploration under the guidance of NASA engineers. It offers a unique internship experience in which high school students in Texas apply engineering principles to real NASA mission challenges.
5. Houston Methodist High School Emerging Researcher Experience
Location: Texas Medical Center, Houston, TX
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance Rate: Highly selective
Dates: June 8 – July 31
Application Deadline: January 30
Eligibility: High school juniors and seniors (16+) with a minimum 3.5 GPA
This is a formal research internship in which you will be paired with faculty mentors and undergraduate interns to work on active laboratory projects at the Houston Methodist Academic Institute. You’ll perform actual bench research, learn professional scientific writing, and engage in data analysis in the field of translational research. The internship is an eight-week experience that also includes professional development sessions focused on college selection and scholarship applications. It concludes with a symposium where you’ll present your findings to the medical community.
6. DACCPM Summer Research Program
Location: The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Stipend: $3,600
Acceptance Rate: Highly selective
Dates: June 1 – August 7
Application Deadline: November 17 – January 14
Eligibility: High school students who are 18 or older
The DACCPM program introduces you to basic science and clinical research environments through structured laboratory and project-based activities. You’ll work with a faculty mentor on an assigned research topic, covering basic mechanisms in pain and anesthesiology to clinical research protocols, along with data collection, interpretation, and scientific communication. Training begins with foundational topics, including lab safety, research ethics, and literature review techniques, to prepare you for your project work. The experience culminates in a symposium where you’ll present your findings and submit a research abstract that reflects your contributions.
7. Hire Houston Youth (HHY)
Location: Various City of Houston departments and private partners
Stipend: Paid
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Not specified
Dates: 8 weeks in the summer
Application Deadline: Typically March or April
Eligibility: Houston residents aged 16-24
The Hire Houston Youth program is the city’s primary youth employment initiative, connecting students with paid internships across municipal departments, including Public Works, Parks and Recreation, and the Mayor's Office. As a participant, you’ll work 32 hours per week in professional roles that offer insight into local government and urban operations. The program is designed to provide earn and learn"opportunities that build a resume and professional network. Many private sector companies also use this portal to hire high school interns for the summer.
8. UPWARDS Summer Program
Location: The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Stipend: Up to $7,200
Cohort Size: Up to 10 students
Dates: 10 weeks in the summer
Application Deadline: November 17 – January 19
Eligibility: Rising high school seniors (18+) who are economically disadvantaged, educationally disadvantaged, with disabilities, or first-generation students
UPWARDS places you in laboratory settings where you’ll engage directly with biomedical research processes under faculty supervision. You’ll be paired with a research mentor and gain practical experience in techniques and protocols used in scientific investigation. In addition to your lab work, the program includes structured coursework and training sessions to deepen your understanding of research fundamentals. You’ll attend scientific lectures and career development events that cover topics from experimental design to professional pathways in STEM. At the conclusion of the program, you’ll present your research at a poster session, synthesizing what you’ve learned into clear, visual communication.
9. Mohanlab Summer Internship Program for High School Students
Location: University of Houston, Houston, TX
Cost/Stipend: None
Cohort Size: ~10 students
Dates: June 8 – July 31
Application Deadline: February 1 – March 26
Eligibility: Rising high school seniors
The Mohanlab Summer Internship Program for High School Students focuses on biomedical engineering and big data analytics, particularly in neuroscience and AI. After an initial two-week training period in laboratory techniques, you’ll transition to eight weeks of bench research under the supervision of a graduate student or scientist. The work is substantial enough that you may receive credit in research publications. The program ends with a formal oral presentation of the research findings. You can also continue your research after the program ends.
10. HBA CIS Summer Legal Internship Program
Location: Law firms/legal departments in Houston
Stipend: Paid
Acceptance Rate: Selective
Dates: 8 weeks in the summer
Application Deadline: Typically, in February
Eligibility: Academically advanced high school juniors or seniors who attend at-risk schools
The HBA CIS Summer Legal Internship Program will place you directly into Houston-area law firms and corporate legal departments, where you’ll perform administrative and legal support tasks. This gives you the chance to gain firsthand exposure to the daily operations of a professional legal environment. The program includes a job-readiness component in which you will learn corporate etiquette and resume-building. It is a genuine workplace internship designed to build students' professional social capital.
11. Moran Ecoteen Summer Volunteer Program
Location: Houston Museum of Natural Science, Houston, TX
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Not specified
Dates: During the summer
Application Deadline: Typically, in January
Eligibility: Rising 9th-11th graders
As an ecoteen in the Moran Ecoteen Summer Volunteer Program, you will serve as educators and assistants throughout the museum’s summer camps and exhibit halls. You’ll be trained in specific scientific disciplines to facilitate educational activities for younger children and museum guests. The program requires a minimum commitment of two weeks and offers a pathway to leadership roles on the Teen Advisory Council. It’s ideal for high school students interested in education, natural sciences, or museum curation.
12. Lazarus Energy Empowerment Program (LEEP)
Location: Several locations in Houston, TX
Stipend: Paid
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Not specified
Dates: Year-long
Application Deadline: Not provided
Eligibility: High school juniors and seniors (16+) attending CIS-supported campuses
LEEP is a long-term internship designed to introduce high school students in Houston, TX, to workplace expectations and career pathways connected to the energy sector. Instead of focusing on a single role, you’ll develop transferable skills such as problem-solving, collaboration, planning, and professional communication. You will also spend time learning about goal-setting, career mapping, and entrepreneurship concepts. College access and planning are addressed within the broader career-development framework.
13. Sewa USA Lead Houston Internships
Location: Greater Houston Area, TX
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Not specified
Dates: 50 hours during the summer
Application Deadline: Not provided
Eligibility: High school students
Lead Houston is a community-focused internship that places you in hands-on service and nonprofit support work. You’ll spend time assisting at volunteer events and educational centers, where tasks may include helping with lessons and supporting community projects. Alongside service work, you’ll be paired with a near-peer mentor who will introduce you to day-to-day nonprofit operations and collaborative project work. Depending on current needs, you may contribute to areas like public relations, event coordination, grant-related tasks, or youth education initiatives.
14. Zoo Crew Explorers
Location: Houston Zoo, Houston, TX
Cost: $325 (summer) + an additional $275 (year-round)
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Not specified
Dates: Session 1: June 1 – 26; Session 2: June 15 – July 10; Session 3: June 29 – July 24; Session 4: July 13 – August 7
Application Deadline: January 23 – February 22
Eligibility: Teens aged 13-17
Zoo Crew Explorers is an exploratory internship that introduces you to the many careers involved in zoo operations and wildlife conservation. Over the course of the program, you will rotate through different learning experiences that explain how animal care, education, facilities, and communication teams support conservation goals. Part of your time will be spent mentoring younger campers, while another portion focuses on public-facing education as a zoo naturalist. You’ll also practice interpretation skills by explaining animal behavior and conservation actions to visitors.
If you’re looking to build a project/research paper in the field of AI & ML, consider applying to Veritas AI!
With Veritas AI, which was founded by Harvard graduate students, you can work 1-on-1 with mentors from universities like Harvard, Stanford, MIT, and more to create unique, personalized projects. In the past year, we had over 1000 students learn AI & ML with us. Check out a past student’s experience in the program here. You can apply here!
Image source - NASA