High School Apprenticeship Challenge
High School Apprenticeship Challenge supports underrepresented and low-income Massachusetts high school students through paid life sciences internships and training to build skills and a diverse STEM workforce.
Funder: Massachusetts Life Sciences Center
Due Dates: May 1, 2026 (Internship period begins) | April 30, 2027 (Internship period ends)
Funding Amounts: Up to $4,080 per intern, based on $17 per hour for six weeks of full-time work
Summary: Supports paid life sciences internships and pre-internship training for underrepresented and low-income Massachusetts high school students.
Key Information: Funding is first-come, first-served and allocated only after MLSC approves offer requests within the organization application.
Description
The High School Apprenticeship Challenge, run by the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC), facilitates paid internships for underrepresented and low-income high school students throughout Massachusetts. By subsidizing intern wages at research institutions and small life sciences companies, the program creates more than 150 new internship opportunities each year. These placements provide practical experience, mentoring, and exposure to life sciences careers.
The program also supports pre-internship biotechnology/biomedical laboratory training and professional skills development in selected communities. Its goals include expanding paid work-based learning opportunities, supplementing life science education, fostering relationships between economically disadvantaged schools and life sciences employers, and developing students’ workplace skills. Together, the internships and training aim to build a diverse STEM workforce pipeline.
