Not Their Parents’ Internship: Today’s High School Students are Solving Real-World Problems

NAF is Proud to Spotlight Their Achievements, In Celebration of National Internship Awareness Month 2024

Ask current high school students’ parents about what internships were like when they completed them and you’ll likely hear about routine tasks like making copies and supporting supervisors (even getting coffee). Internships have evolved substantially since then, as has the range of career preparation activities equivalent to internships.  Today’s students have many different avenues to complete an in-depth career experience that helps them identify career aspirations, develop their skills, and build connections, consistent with NAF’s Outcomes-Driven WBL approach. Across the NAF Network, we have students engaging in internships (including virtual, hybrid, and in-person formats), mentored industry projects, clinical experiences, and apprenticeships/youth apprenticeships. Read more about these invaluable experiences below: 

Mentored Industry Projects:

Mentored Industry Projects – where teams of students solve industry problems – are powerful opportunities to bring work-based learning (WBL) directly to the classroom. Students get to engage in the challenging, open-ended work of real-world problem solving, the perfect context for developing critical Future Ready Skills. 

Teamship Model (NAF’s partnership with District C)

District C has reimagined the internship for students to prepare them for modern-day work. Unlike a traditional internship, students solve real problems for real businesses in small, diverse teams through a Teamship experience. Through the collaboration with NAF, Teamship counts as a 40-hour mentored industry project. Three NAF academies have implemented Teamship – with 599 (and counting!) total students completing the experience. As an example, students at Clarence Central High School in New York, solved a business program for the VA. During the pitch, both local and U.S. Government VA employees and executives participated and asked questions of the students.

KnoPro

KnoPro is a 100% FREE educator-designed digital platform that connects high school students and teachers with authentic industry challenges and professional mentors that help students build skills and develop their career aspirations. With KnoPro, high school students solve real-world problems they care about (in teams or solo!); build in-demand skills for resumes or college applications; AND earn points that convert to prizes and cash.

Students from any high school can create an account and participate in Challenges and Skillbuilders (must be at least 13 years old). Companies provide real-world problems and students have to develop and pitch solutions. Recent examples include:

• How can oral health be improved for youth in under-resourced communities? (sponsored by Delta Dental)
• What ideas do you have for using AI to address environmental issues? (sponsored by the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation)
• How can high school students use cutting-edge tech (e.g., AR,VR, XR, or AI) to explore and choose their best fit career and/or training path (college or technical program)? (sponsored by Lenovo) – NAF student Aditya M. received 1st place for this challenge (view his pitch)

These Challenges can form the basis for a Mentored Industry Project, if the student(s) work with a professional, as they develop their solution and pitch. 

Examples of Other Career Preparation Activities Happening at NAF Academies:

New Bedford High School, Academy of Health Sciences, New Bedford, MA was awarded a $500,000 Massachusetts Skills Capital grant to construct a simulated patient laboratory. Students also had the opportunity to participate in two unique paid internships; One in marine sciences and another in biotechnology. In partnership with UMass Dartmouth, the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center, Woods Hole Sea Grant, and Jacobs Family Donor Fund, interns worked during the summer and learned to research topics of interest in the marine field. (Source: Katherine Blasik Distinguished and Model Academies 2023)

Lee County High School, Academy of Engineering (Sanford, NC) – students “completed apprenticeships with Caterpillar and Sanford Contractors — learning about the engineering design model and how it works in different job experiences.” (Source: Katherine Blasik Distinguished and Model Academies 2023)

Several academies have created career preparation activities focused on helping students gain financial services experience. Porterville High School, Academy of Business & Finance, partnered with Tulare County Federal Credit Union (TCFCU) to create the only student-run branch in the county. In addition to handling financial transactions and other operational tasks, under the supervision of the Financial Education Coordinator, students manage the marketing and social media for the branch. Porterville students can also complete a paid summer internship at TCFCU to continue expanding their banking and money management skills.

Students at New Britain High School, Academy of Business & Finance, complete tax preparation training, earn certifications, and participate in the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program. Their work was recently highlighted in CT INSIDER. Educators and industry professionals from both programs will be co-presenting a session at NAF Next this July.

A Bright Future

Having high school students propose solutions to the big picture problems of today better prepares them for whatever path they choose after graduation and also helps them develop social capital. Career preparation activities, including internships, clinical experiences, apprenticeships/youth apprenticeships, and mentored industry projects, are the essential opportunities students need to become the leaders and change agents of the future.

Follow NAF on social media @NAFCareerAcads for more, all month long!