DATES FOR 2024: HTHI 11th grade Internships will be from January 22 - February 23, 2024.
What is the HTH Internship Program?
At High Tech High International, we make sure to provide connections to the “adult world” to students at every grade level, but it gets really serious in 11th grade: juniors aren’t just “connected” to the adult world – for five weeks, they’re part of it, working full-time as an intern in a professional organization.
Interns work with an on-site mentor and every student designs and completes a personal project that is beneficial to the host organization.
Features of the HTHI Internship program:
All High Tech High juniors are required to complete an internship at an off-campus organization. The internship consists of a four or five-week, full-time immersion at the worksite. Students receive credit for successfully completing their internship and related course work.
Each student is paired with a workplace mentor who understands and supports the goals of the program. Mentors communicate regularly with the student’s teachers about their progress and attendance.
All interns develop a substantial project with the mentor. This project should make a meaningful contribution to the organization.
After their internship, every student gives a Presentation of Learning to their mentor, their teachers, and their fellow-students. This culminating event celebrates the student’s accomplishments and offers an occasion for reflection and critique.
The internship is supported by the school, in which students prepare for and reflect on their internship experiences. Intern assignments include a journal, a photo essay, an in-depth interview with their mentor, creation of an internship portfolio, and completion of their internship project.
What students need to do to get credit for internship
Work for 30 hours a week on-site at your organization
Meet every day with your mentor
Work with your mentor to design and complete a project that benefits the organization
Document your internship and share it with your teachers and your fellow students
Present what you’ve learned in your internship to your parents, teachers, mentor, and fellow students
The Internship Project
The student and mentor work together to plan the student’s internship project. It is important to develop a project proposal during the first week of internship (if not before), to ensure that both the mentor and the intern have a clear goal to work towards.
In the past, interns have worked on projects that range from event and marketing support projects, web design projects, recruitment and retention projects with HR department, networking, software and hardware support, and public relations support, including presentations in public forums and in the community.
Should internships take place in person at the internship site?
Yes! It is also possible for an internship to be both in person part time and digital part time. Internship experiences can be in-person, online, or a hybrid of the two.
When do these take place?
Internships take place from January 22 – February 23, 2024. The goal is for the interns to work 30 hours per week, the specific hours that the intern works each day should be decided by the intern and the mentor (with parent and teacher approval). The specific number of hours an intern works should be determined by the number of hours necessary to have a high quality experience.
How do I get to Internship?
Students are responsible for transportation to and from their Internship sites, which may be via their own vehicle, parent/guardian driving, or mass transit. The Host Organization is not responsible for transportation of the student. The mentor shall not transport a student unless the parent/guardian has given prior written consent for the mentor to transport their student for purposes of the Internship only.
Can internships take place in groups?
Yes. One thing we’ve tried to keep in mind as we’ve shifted to digital internships is the collaborative or social atmosphere of many workplaces. While wanting to be clear that a mentor should feel no pressure to work with more than one.
We are so grateful to our generous and excellent mentors. AND, we are looking for adults willing to share their time, wisdom, and experiences with our students. Be a mentor, make a difference.