Work with the world’s best start-ups
A world-class internship program for ambitious high school students.
Founded by Harvard entrepreneurs, Ladder Internships helps students work with top startups to build
real-world projects.
600+
Applications
Our Impact
100
Interns
selected
50+
Host
Companies
$50,000+
In financial aid
Hear from some of our interns!
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Lan Nguyen
Interned at Vietcetera
“The program catalyzed both my intellectual and personal growth. If you are looking for a challenging and rewarding internship that matches your interests and skills, don’t hesitate to apply!”
Project: Creating machine learning models to boost the company’s subscriber base. -
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Khalid Hajj
Interned at Billion Dollar Startup Ideas
”This was my first real working experience, and I took away a lot of value from it. I also valued my direct interaction with Michael, the founder of my host company, who I found inspiring.”
Project: Building a business plan for a subscription-based AI start-up idea generator. -
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Sriya Bandyopadhyay
Interned at Divercity.io
“Ladder was essential in creating the foundation of the relationship between me and my the host company, Divercity.io. Each task was tailored to fit my interests and strengths while also pushing me to learn new things.”
Project: Creating a go-to-market strategy for a personal finance app. -
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Hannah Bang
Interned at Certintell Telehealth
“Through my host company’s mentoring and being allowed to work independently, I gained work experience that I normally wouldn't be able to receive until after college!”
Project: Coding SMS & email processing systems connected to medical devices enabling broader testing. -
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Christopher Tilley
Interned at Certinell Telehealth
“This program allowed me to get to know myself, my workflow, and how to work with and around other people. Ladder is a great experience!”
Project: Creating strategy documents for a new patient monitoring system.
Our Hosts & Your Mentors
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Dr. Samantha Scott
Founder & CEO,
JuneBrain
Stanford, USC & NIH alum -
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Luke Heine
Founder & CEO,
Fair Opportunity Project
Harvard, YCombinator & Microsoft alum -
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Michael Bervell
Founder & CEO,
Billion Dollar Startup Ideas
Harvard Business School & Microsoft alum -
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Hanh Ha
Co-founder & CEO, Softenmind
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee alum -
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Kevin Junker
Founder & CEO,
Fintech Launch (Stealth Mode)
Cambridge University, Google & Mckinsey alum -
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Min Lee
Founder, CEO & President,
IPMD
UC Berkeley alum
Meet a few of our Host Companies
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JuneBrain
Industry: Healthcare, Tech
JuneBrain is focused on improving remote monitoring in ophthalmology & neurology with a patented wearable eye-scanning device and SaaS platform. -
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Softenmind
Industry: Mental Health, Tech
Funded by glocal VC, Antler, SoftenMind aims to bring affordable and professional mental health services to Vietnamese people through using proprietary digital and AI tools.
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IPMD
Industry: Healthcare, Tech
IPMD is on a mission to revolutionize patient experiences using AI solutions, and has been a part of many prestigious start-up programs including those by GCP, Nvidia, AWS and IBM. -
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Fair Opportunity Project
Industry: Tech, Non-profit
Recognized in Forbes, NYT, and the Harvard Education Review, Fair Opportunity Project sends free college application advice to 63,000 public educators and provides free 1:1 mentorship to hundreds of students.
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Billion Dollar Startup Ideas
Industry: Tech, Media
Billion Dollar Startup Ideas is one of the world’s largest generators and aggregators of unicorn-level start-up ideas, with a reach of over 850,000 people.
Our Companies & Your Mentors
Funded by
Studied at
Worked at
Available Fields
Finance
Enviromental Science
Non-Profit
Software
Engineering
Machine Learning & AI
Consulting
Health Tech & Mental Health
Tech & Deep Tech
Media & Journalism
Program By The Numbers
Startup Internship Program
Number of sessions with the host company
8
Hours of work per week
5-10
Duration
8 weeks
Research Internship Program
Number of 1-on-1 sessions with the writing coach
Number of 1-on-1 sessions with the research mentor
15
4
4
Number of hours expected per week
Number of 1-on-1 sessions with the publication specialist
10-15
Duration
12-16 weeks for research, 4-16 for publication
*Our Combination Startup-Research Internship program combines the offerings of the two programs.
Program Timeline
Week 1
Meet with the company coach and define the project
Week 2
Work on the project with the company coach
Week 3
Finalize the first draft of the project, meet with the company coach
Week 4
Present the first deliverable to the company
Week 5
Meet with the company mentor, define the second deliverable
Week 6
Work with the company coach on the second deliverable
Week 7
Finalize the project
Week 8
Present the final project to the company
What you will get out of this internship
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A real-world project
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Work experience at a top start-up
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A letter of completion by the company
The Application Process
Internships with real-world companies are challenging. That’s why we implement a selection process that helps us select only the best interns.
Submit the application form
Interview
Receive an acceptance decision
Start the program!
FAQs
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Absolutely! Our team suggests company projects based on an applicant’s interests and notes from their interview. Details of the best fit projects are shared with students who have the final say in whether they wish to move ahead with the suggested match!
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Internships with real-world companies are challenging. That’s why we implement a selection process that helps us select only the best interns. For example, our summer 2023 cohort had over 700 applicants for just 70 spots.
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The program is fully online! Our team itself operates remotely across multiple countries.
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The internship will be fully virtual and will run for a period of 8 weeks. Interns usually require 10-15 hours a week to work on assigned tasks and to meet company management.
The program is designed to deliver tangible results without demanding day-to-day work! -
Yes, we offer full financial aid to those in need. Our sister programs, Lumiere Research Program and Veritas AI, have provided aid to over 150 students.
ARE YOU UP FOR THE CHALLENGE?
Upcoming Application Deadlines
Summer Cohort (Regular Admission 2): May 12, 2024
Cohort timing: June 3, 2024
Summer II Cohort Admission Deadline: June 26, 2024
Cohort timing: July 15, 2024