Did you have an internship in high school? For marketing people please.

Hi Julea,

It's wonderful that you are considering an internship while you are in high school for any field that you are interested in gaining experience. It is certainly not necessary for you to do but I commend you for your motivation and interest!

With that in mind, you may find some challenges with securing an internship as a high school student vs being a college student. Not to be discouraged, it's still very much possible for you to do. I would advise you to spend time thinking about what kind of industry or company that you would be interested in marketing for? Then think about your network of teachers, mentors, parents, and neighbors who might be able to tell you about different types of companies that sell products and services . Additionally you could contact your local colleges and universities and ask them to make introductions for you to places where they may be accepting high school student internships.

The best advice is to get out there and ask questions and talk to people about what you are interested in learning.

Good luck!

Hi Julea!

I'm inclined to agree with Bryan and Danielle; my gut reaction is to tell you to enjoy your summers and not to spend them working! That said, it does speak a lot to your motivation. AND, I've found that career success in the communications field does indeed have almost as much to do with who you know as what you know. So the sooner you start networking, the better. Learning the ins and outs of the business and the technologies we use will give you an advantage early on.

But remember that out here in the professional world, we're all TOTALLY jealous that you can still get your summers off. So do try to enjoy them as much as possible! You do have plenty of time. If you start networking your sophomore year of college, you'll still be way ahead of the curve.

I started my career in marketing, but I did not have any internships in high school related to marketing (only in college).

What I did was find ways, in my roles at school and in the part-time jobs I did have in high school, to work on marketing related projects. I helped the businesses I worked for with their marketing, even though I didn't have an official marketing role. I would take leadership positions in clubs at school and work on marketing activities. Even volunteer opportunities with non-profits or organizations have marketing activities you could take part in. These are all great examples of marketing you could include on a resume, even though they aren't direct marketing jobs/internships.

Are there opportunities for you to help with marketing type activities at the camps you attend? That would be a great place to start!

I hope that helps! Best of luck to you.

Hi Julea,

Wow - it's great that you're thinking about an internship as early as high school. Danielle is spot on; it's definitely not necessary but it sure says a lot about your motivation, so great job. Personally, I didn't take an internship in high school -- I did one during my senior year of college, but looking back I wish I had taken an internship sooner. Your school along with local college recruiting offices are a great place to start if you're considering a summer internship. You'll likely find a few colleges that offer special programs for high school students seeking internships.

But if you wind up working at camp, you'll find that it has a lot in common with many forms of marketing: event planning, program/campaign management and if you can get your message across to a group of young kids or teens, then you're already ahead of the game. :) You'll also hone a host of leadership skills that you'll draw on and help you grow. It's a good reminder that all of your activities inside and out of school add up to your career goals.

One other piece of advice: along with traditional internships and jobs, try and become as familiar as possible with digital services that are quickly emerging as some of the most powerful tools for marketing: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, Vine, etc. You probably use some of these already, but there's a host of online reading (and traditional books) about how they're being used by marketers today. As much as you can be fluent in future tools, the better. Hope this helps and best of luck!

I did have internships in high school, and they definitely helped me land even better internships once I got to college. They aren't necessary, but they will definitely set you apart from others.

Also, if you don't have time for a full fledged internship, try some marketing projects to build your portfolio. Maybe you can find a nonprofit organization whose cause you support and offer to help them with their marketing. This could be something you do on weekends or in your spare time.