5 answers
Kathryn
Student
Broomfield, Colorado
1
Question
Updated
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What kind of internships/shadowing positions are available for 15 year olds in the engineering field?
I'm most interested in mechanical, architectural, civil, and aerospace engineering and looking for things near or around Broomfield, Colorado or online. I don't really know where to start to look or what exactly I should be looking for.
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5 answers
Samantha Barkley
Industrial Engineer
8
Answers
St. Louis, MO
Updated
Samantha’s Answer
Your school counselor should be a good resource for what may be available in the area. There are also lots of engineering organizations that would probably love to hear from you and help you get connected to some shadowing opportunities and potential internships. You should be able to go to their websites to find local chapters...
Society of Women Engineers (SWE)
Women in Manufacturing (WIM)
National Society of Professional Engineers
American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)
American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)
Society of Women Engineers (SWE)
Women in Manufacturing (WIM)
National Society of Professional Engineers
American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)
American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)
Cory Yeager, PE, SE, MsC, PPM
46
Answers
Updated
Cory’s Answer
Lots of good information previously given. I won’t repeat and will try to not overlap other info.
For architecture cold call a local firm and see whether they have internships. Should you have the means and resources to not need paid then considering offer your labor or time for free. I did this and got some really good experience. Not being from your area I hope this is something you can try.
For civil engineering I would research local firms and cold call. You may also research the open careers at the firm (if listed) and see whether you could help with those as a paid or unpaid intern.
For aerospace, go to the FAA webpage and search for internships and scholarships there. This field is huge and Colorado has a robust industry in this field. When I worked at the FAA there were internships for those not in college. As previously mentioned you will have to check the age requirements.
Good luck
For architecture cold call a local firm and see whether they have internships. Should you have the means and resources to not need paid then considering offer your labor or time for free. I did this and got some really good experience. Not being from your area I hope this is something you can try.
For civil engineering I would research local firms and cold call. You may also research the open careers at the firm (if listed) and see whether you could help with those as a paid or unpaid intern.
For aerospace, go to the FAA webpage and search for internships and scholarships there. This field is huge and Colorado has a robust industry in this field. When I worked at the FAA there were internships for those not in college. As previously mentioned you will have to check the age requirements.
Good luck
Richard Thornton
Aerospace Engineer
20
Answers
Robbinsville, New Jersey
Updated
Richard’s Answer
It's excellent to hear about your interest in STEM fields Kathryn! I want to iterate what's been said in the previous responses that one of the best ways to find opportunities is by reaching out to your local businesses directly or on LinkedIn. While there may not be many job/internship postings that accept candidates at your age, finding a recruiter on LinkedIn for that location and messaging them is still a great option. Explaining your interest in the field and seeing what opportunities they may have is a way to get your foot in the door, so at the very least they recognize your name down the line.
Another point to remember is even if a technical internship isn't available this summer, a great way to secure one in the future is by finding a STEM-based competition that you can apply for (usually as a team, but some accept individuals). I see you're interested in mechanical and aerospace engineering, which is excellent because some of the greatest STEM competitions/events being sponsored for grade 9-12 students come from organizations such as NASA. It may seem intimidating, but they are actually quite accepting of students with varying backgrounds in science and engineering - and it doesn't even take much effort to apply to one of their events. Here's a quick example of one held around this time last year (so keep an eye out for new ones to be released soon): https://www.nasa.gov/aeronautics/nasa-aeronautics-dream-with-us-design-challenge
I have seen interns hired directly as a result of applying to one of these events where they were then able to network with industry leaders and simply ask for an internship - it may not come as a surprise that these folks want driven and technical students to work for them some day. Plus even if you don't win the whole thing, the important part is the experience of coming up with a whole plan and design on your own. It's also very impressive to be taking the initiative to get a small team together, find a teacher to act as a proctor and chaperone for any future travel, and executing on it, all on your own!
Another point to remember is even if a technical internship isn't available this summer, a great way to secure one in the future is by finding a STEM-based competition that you can apply for (usually as a team, but some accept individuals). I see you're interested in mechanical and aerospace engineering, which is excellent because some of the greatest STEM competitions/events being sponsored for grade 9-12 students come from organizations such as NASA. It may seem intimidating, but they are actually quite accepting of students with varying backgrounds in science and engineering - and it doesn't even take much effort to apply to one of their events. Here's a quick example of one held around this time last year (so keep an eye out for new ones to be released soon): https://www.nasa.gov/aeronautics/nasa-aeronautics-dream-with-us-design-challenge
I have seen interns hired directly as a result of applying to one of these events where they were then able to network with industry leaders and simply ask for an internship - it may not come as a surprise that these folks want driven and technical students to work for them some day. Plus even if you don't win the whole thing, the important part is the experience of coming up with a whole plan and design on your own. It's also very impressive to be taking the initiative to get a small team together, find a teacher to act as a proctor and chaperone for any future travel, and executing on it, all on your own!
Jed Pitera
Researcher
12
Answers
San Jose, California
Updated
Jed’s Answer
Specific to where you are, you might reach out to the folks at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). They have a bunch of sites between Denver and Boulder that work on everything from solar cells to recycling to green buildings. I don't know if they have high school internships but they are probably a good resource for finding other engineering companies in the area. You can find them online at http://www.nrel.gov
Michelle M.
Entertainment Industry
1848
Answers
Updated
Michelle’s Answer
Hello, Kathryn !
This is a wonderful career goal and I would like to give some advice for you to consider.
There are internship opportunities in the engineering field near you, but you will have to check about the age requirement. I have left a link below because these opportunities are offered at some providers that may have opportunities for teens, too, so you would have to contact the providers for the exact information. I have left a couple of links for this below. You can find a lot of information about this by doing a search on line and contacting various engineering firms in Broomfield and inquiring. The quickest way to find out about shadowing, internships, volunteer work at your local engineering companies would be to phone or e-mail them. Than you can make your list of possibilities and choose which one you'd like to do.
You can also take paid classes in engineering that are offered to your age group at Outschool. Read their website at the link I have left for you below. There will always be something you can do, whether it's taking a class on line, working on line or volunteer work, and an internship would be ideal, but consider the various ways that you can gain knowledge and experience. Below I have left for you a link to Engineer Girl website. The whole website is fabulous and has lots of information for your interest.
Lastly, it would help you to register at Linked In and Indeed so that you can be notified of any internships, volunteer work or employment in the engineering field.
I hope this helps and I wish you all the best !
ENGINEERING INTERNSHIP INFORMATION FOR BROOMFIELD https://www.indeed.com/q-Engineering-Internship-l-Broomfield,-CO-jobs.html?vjk=ed4eed1710ca76eb
ENGINEERING INTERN JOBS IN BROOMFIELD https://www.zippia.com/engineering-internship-broomfield-co-jobs/
TEENAGED ENGINEERING JOBS WORK FROM HOME https://www.careerinstem.com/10-work-from-home-stem-jobs-for-teens/
TEEN ENGINEERING CLASSES WITH A FEE ONLINE https://outschool.com/online-classes/engineering
ENGINEER GIRL WEBSITE https://www.engineergirl.org/10642/A-Girls-Guide-to-Job-Shadowing
This is a wonderful career goal and I would like to give some advice for you to consider.
There are internship opportunities in the engineering field near you, but you will have to check about the age requirement. I have left a link below because these opportunities are offered at some providers that may have opportunities for teens, too, so you would have to contact the providers for the exact information. I have left a couple of links for this below. You can find a lot of information about this by doing a search on line and contacting various engineering firms in Broomfield and inquiring. The quickest way to find out about shadowing, internships, volunteer work at your local engineering companies would be to phone or e-mail them. Than you can make your list of possibilities and choose which one you'd like to do.
You can also take paid classes in engineering that are offered to your age group at Outschool. Read their website at the link I have left for you below. There will always be something you can do, whether it's taking a class on line, working on line or volunteer work, and an internship would be ideal, but consider the various ways that you can gain knowledge and experience. Below I have left for you a link to Engineer Girl website. The whole website is fabulous and has lots of information for your interest.
Lastly, it would help you to register at Linked In and Indeed so that you can be notified of any internships, volunteer work or employment in the engineering field.
I hope this helps and I wish you all the best !
Michelle recommends the following next steps:
This was super helpful, thank you!
Kathryn
You are very welcome, Kathryn !
Michelle M.