15 Summer Internships in NYC for College Students in 2026
- Stephen Turban
- 4 hours ago
- 13 min read
If you're a college student looking to build professional experience, a summer internship can help you apply what you've learned in class while exploring potential career paths. Internships expose you to industries such as finance, media, technology, publishing, government, research, and the arts, while helping you develop technical, analytical, and workplace skills. They also provide opportunities to work with experienced professionals, expand your network, and gain a better understanding of different roles within your field.
In New York City, summer internships are offered by global companies, universities, museums, financial institutions, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations. These opportunities span a wide range of industries and formats, including research fellowships, corporate internships, public sector placements, and creative roles, giving students access to one of the world's largest professional and cultural hubs.
Why should I do a summer internship in NYC?
Summer internships in New York City allow you to contribute to professional projects while learning how organizations operate in fast-paced environments. Depending on the opportunity, you might conduct research, analyze data, support marketing campaigns, assist with financial projects, contribute to museum exhibitions, work on media productions, or collaborate with teams across business, science, government, and the arts. Whether you're studying in New York or coming from another university, these internships can help you develop practical skills, build professional connections, and prepare for future careers.
To help you get started, we've compiled a list of 15 summer internships in NYC for college students in 2026.
If you’re looking for remote internships, check out our blog here.
Key takeaways
These 15 internships span finance, government, media, music, publishing, museums, and biomedical research, so college students with a wide range of academic and career interests can find a relevant summer opportunity in New York City.
Several internships are well-compensated, including Morgan Stanley (up to $52.89 per hour), Federal Reserve Bank of New York (paid graduate placement), NYC SIP ($595 to $935 per week), Rockefeller University SURF ($6,500 plus free housing), and the Metropolitan Museum of Art ($24 per hour plus a $1,500 housing stipend), making them financially viable for students relocating to NYC for the summer.
Many internships include structured professional development beyond day-to-day project work, including speaker series, networking events, mentorship programs, and final presentations, which help students build connections and professional skills alongside technical experience.
Application deadlines vary widely, with some internships closing as early as October or November of the preceding year, including HarperCollins (October 10), Federal Reserve Bank of New York (October 5 to 25), NBCUniversal (early December), and Whitney Museum (late November), so students should begin researching and preparing materials well before the summer.
Several internships are open to non-NYC students and include housing support or stipends that offset relocation costs, including Rockefeller SURF (free housing), NYU SURP (housing, meals, and travel for non-NYU students), and the Met (housing and travel stipend).
Location: Remote! You can work from anywhere in the world.
Cost: Varies by program
Dates: Multiple cohorts throughout the year, including Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter.
Application deadline: Varies by cohort. Spring (January), Summer (May), Fall (September), and Winter (November).
Eligibility: Students who can work for 10-20 hours/week for 8-12 weeks. Open to undergraduates and gap year students!
Ladder University Internship Program is a selective, virtual internship program where you work with startups and nonprofits from around the world! The startups range across a variety of industries. As part of their internship, each student will work on a real-world project that addresses a genuine need for the startup they are working with and present their work at the end of their internship. Interns work closely with their manager at the startup. Apply now!
Location: Morgan Stanley, New York
Stipend: Varies by division (e.g., Finance is $32/hr, Fund Services is $43.27/hr, Wealth/Risk is $52.89/hr)
Dates: 10-weeks in the summer
Application Deadline: May 15
Eligibility: Minimum GPA of 3.0; Bachelor’s degree completion between December and May (all majors eligible), with a strong interest in risk, finance, and regulation.
Morgan Stanley's Summer Analyst Program places you inside one of the firm's business divisions for ten weeks, where you'll work alongside analysts and associates on live projects. Depending on your team, you may help with financial analysis, risk management, regulatory work, or client-related assignments. You'll attend training sessions that introduce the firm's business, financial markets, and the tools professionals use every day. Throughout the internship, you'll receive guidance from managers and have opportunities to meet senior leaders across the firm. The program ends with practical experience inside a global investment bank, working on the same teams that handle day-to-day business operations.
Location: New York, NY, at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York
Stipend: Paid
Dates: 10 weeks, beginning in early June
Application Deadline: October 5, October 12, or October 25 (depending on the specific group)
Eligibility: Graduate students who have completed their first year of graduate study are eligible to apply.
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York's Summer Associate Program places you within departments that support economic research, financial markets, banking supervision, or policy work. You will work alongside economists, researchers, and other professionals on projects connected to the Federal Reserve's responsibilities. The program includes professional development sessions, networking events, and discussions with senior leaders across the Bank. Throughout the summer, you'll see how research and data help shape decisions that influence the U.S. financial system. The experience ends with a presentation where you share the work you completed during your internship.
Location: Multiple open positions in New York
Stipend: Paid and other perks
Acceptance rate/cohort size: NA
Dates: 10 weeks in June and August
Application Deadline: Summer internship applications typically close in early December
Eligibility: Open to students (sophomore+ / 30+ credits) pursuing an associate, bachelor’s, or graduate degree with proof of enrollment. Must be authorized to work in the U.S. without visa sponsorship; GPA requirements apply only if specified.
NBCUniversal offers internships across television, film, streaming, news, sports, technology, and business teams. You will join a department and contribute to real projects, rather than simply observing from the sidelines. Alongside your day-to-day work, you'll attend speaker events, professional development sessions, and networking activities with employees from across the company. The program also gives you a chance to explore different career paths within one of the world's largest media organizations. Many interns return through NBCUniversal's early-career hiring pipeline after completing the program.
Location: Warner Music Group, New York, NY
Stipend: Paid
Acceptance rate/cohort size: NA
Dates: Summer session takes place in May and June (requiring 20-29 hours/week)
Application Deadline: April 17
Eligibility: Must be 18+, based in the U.S. with local housing/transport, and able to commit 20–29 hours/week (summer). Requires interest or knowledge in the music industry.
Warner Music Group's Emerging Talent Associate Program introduces you to the business side of the music industry through part-time work during the semester. Depending on your placement, you may support teams in recorded music, publishing, marketing, finance, technology, or business operations. You'll work on projects that contribute to your department while learning how artists, labels, and business teams operate together. The program also includes networking events, career development sessions, and opportunities to connect with professionals across Warner Music Group. Throughout the semester, you'll build experience inside one of the world's largest music companies while working with the team you join.
Location: Universal Music Group, New York, NY
Stipend: $15-$25/hour
Acceptance rate/cohort size: NA
Dates: June 8 - August 14
Application Deadline: NA
Eligibility: Enrolled in a U.S. college (undergrad, grad, or law), with local housing/transport, and must be work-authorized without sponsorship and able to commit 20–40 hours/week.
Universal Music Group's Summer Internship Program places you inside one of the world's largest music companies, where you'll work with a specific department for about ten weeks. Depending on your placement, you may support teams in recorded music, music publishing, marketing, finance, legal affairs, merchandising, or artist services. You'll contribute to real projects while learning how albums are released, artists are promoted, and global music operations are managed. The program also includes networking events, career development sessions, and opportunities to meet professionals from across the company. By the end of the summer, you'll have worked as part of the team supporting artists and releases across UMG's global business.
Location: Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum, New York City, NY
Stipend: $7,000 for fully in-person tracks, but $6,000 for hybrid tracks
Acceptance rate/cohort size: NA
Dates: June 8–August 14 (10 weeks, 35 hours/week)
Application Deadline: February 9
Eligibility: Applicants must be enrolled in an undergraduate program at the time of application and eligible to work in the United States.
The Peter A. Krueger Summer Internship gives you the chance to work inside the Smithsonian's design museum for ten weeks. Depending on your department, you may contribute to exhibitions, collections, education, conservation, digital initiatives, or public programs while working with museum staff. You'll also attend professional development sessions, museum visits, and networking events with other interns across the Smithsonian. The program is designed to introduce you to the many careers that support museums beyond curatorial work. It concludes with a presentation where interns share the projects they completed during the summer.
Location: HarperCollins Publishers, New York, NY
Stipend: $18 per hour
Acceptance rate/cohort size: NA
Dates: early June to mid-August
Application Deadline: October 10
Eligibility: Open to current undergraduate/graduate students or recent graduates with strong communication skills and an interest in publishing; must be authorized to work in the U.S. and meet role-specific requirements.
HarperCollins places interns across departments, including editorial, marketing, publicity, sales, design, production, finance, and corporate. You will work alongside publishing professionals while contributing to the day-to-day work involved in bringing books from manuscript to publication. Throughout the summer, you'll also attend speaker sessions, networking events, career workshops, and mentorship activities with employees across the company. The program gives you exposure to both the creative and business sides of publishing through one department. You'll finish the internship with a much clearer understanding of how books move from an author's draft to bookstore shelves.
Location: The MET, New York, NY
Cost: Full-time: 35 hrs/week (5 days), $24/hr + $1,500 NYC housing/travel stipend (pre-tax) and Part-time: 14 hrs/week, $24/hr
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Not specified
Dates: June 2–August 7
Application Deadline: January 14
Eligibility: Eligible applicants include undergraduate sophomores, juniors, and seniors; current graduate students; recent graduates (within 12 months) from undergraduate or master’s programs; and PhD students who have not yet reached candidacy.
The Met's Summer Internship Program places you in one department for ten weeks, where you'll contribute to projects connected to exhibitions, collections, education, conservation, archives, or museum operations. You'll work alongside museum professionals while gaining experience with the daily work that keeps one of the world's largest museums running. The program also includes professional development sessions, networking opportunities, and visits across different museum departments. Depending on your placement, your work may involve research, public programming, digital projects, or collections management. Interns present their summer work at the end of the program.
Location: MoMA, New York, NY
Stipend: $6,160
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 25 - 30 interns annually
Dates: 10-week programs, offered annually from June through August
Application Deadline: March 1
Eligibility: Open to current students, recent graduates, grad students, and early museum professionals; applicants must have completed at least 2 years of undergraduate study (rising juniors), with all disciplines encouraged.
MoMA matches each intern with a department based on its current projects and needs, giving you direct experience inside a leading contemporary art museum. You may work with curatorial teams, education, exhibitions, archives, publications, digital media, conservation, or other museum departments. Throughout the summer, you'll contribute to ongoing projects while learning how different teams collaborate behind the scenes. The program also includes cohort events and professional development activities for all interns. It concludes with presentations where interns share the work they completed during their placement.
Location: New York City, at participating City agencies; interns must be able to commute to the office location for the role.
Stipend: Summer College Interns earn $595.00–$682.50/week; Summer Graduate Interns earn $627.53–$935.47/week
Acceptance rate/cohort size: NA
Dates: Internships can start as early as May and must end by September 4, for a maximum of 13 weeks
Application Deadline: Varies according to department
Eligibility: Graduate interns must be enrolled in a graduate or law degree program. Undergraduate interns must be currently enrolled in college or university or have graduated within one year of the current program year.
The NYC Summer Internship Program places you inside a New York City government agency, where you'll contribute to projects that directly support city services and public administration. Depending on your placement, you may work in areas such as finance, technology, public policy, communications, human resources, engineering, or legal services. You'll work with full-time employees while learning how city agencies plan, manage, and deliver services to millions of residents. The program also includes professional development workshops and sessions introducing interns to careers in New York City's civil service. By the end of the summer, you'll have experienced how local government operates from inside a public agency.
Location: Columbia University, New York, NY
Stipend: $5000
Acceptance rate/cohort size: NA
Dates: May 26 - July 31
Application Deadline: February 1
Eligibility: Open to junior, sophomore, or first-year students in Columbia College, the School of Engineering and Applied Science, or the School of General Studies.
Columbia's SURF places you in a biology research laboratory, where you'll spend the summer working on an ongoing faculty research project. You'll learn laboratory techniques, collect and analyze data, and take part in the day-to-day work of scientific research alongside graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, and faculty mentors. Weekly seminars introduce topics in modern biological research while giving you the chance to meet scientists from different fields. Throughout the program, you'll build an independent understanding of how research questions are developed and investigated. The summer concludes with a research symposium where you present your work to the Columbia research community.
Location: New York University, New York, NY
Stipend: $5000
Acceptance rate/cohort size: NA
Dates: May 26th - August 1
Application Deadline: Not specified
Eligibility: Open to NYU and non-NYU undergraduates; non-NYU U.S. citizens/permanent residents (sophomore/junior) receive full funding (housing, stipend, meals, travel), while NYU students (freshman–junior, domestic or international) must seek alternative funding.
NYU's Summer Undergraduate Research Program matches you with a faculty laboratory for ten weeks of biomedical research. You'll work closely with researchers as you conduct experiments, analyze data, attend lab meetings, and learn the techniques used in academic science. The program also includes seminars, workshops, and research discussions that introduce different areas of biomedical science. As the summer progresses, you'll become part of your lab's ongoing research rather than working on isolated classroom exercises. The program concludes with a poster session where students present the results of their research.
Location: The Rockefeller University, New York, NY
Stipend: $6,500 and free housing
Acceptance rate/cohort size: NA
Dates: June 1 - August 7
Application Deadline: February 1
Eligibility: Open to college sophomores and juniors
Rockefeller's SURF pairs you with a faculty mentor and a research laboratory for ten weeks of full-time scientific research. You may work in fields such as neuroscience, biology, chemistry, biophysics, or related disciplines while learning laboratory methods used in active research. Throughout the summer, you'll attend lectures, seminars, and scientific discussions alongside your laboratory work. The small cohort also gives you regular opportunities to interact with researchers across the university. The fellowship concludes with a research poster presentation where you'll share your work with the Rockefeller community.
Location: Hybrid; Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, NY
Stipend: $6,500 stipend
Acceptance rate/cohort size: NA
Dates: 9 weeks (June 1 – July 31)
Application Deadline: Late November
Eligibility: Rising and graduating seniors who have completed at least three years of academic coursework before the start of the internship.
The Hearst Summer Internship at the Whitney Museum gives you the opportunity to work full-time within a specific museum department, such as curatorial, education, exhibition design, or digital content. You will contribute directly to ongoing museum projects while gaining a comprehensive understanding of how a major contemporary art institution operates. The program features a weekly speaker series with curators and museum professionals, alongside curator-led tours and excursions to peer institutions across the city. By the end of the nine weeks, you will have developed practical arts administration skills and a professional network within the vibrant New York cultural sector.
Frequently asked questions
What summer internships are available in NYC for college students in 2026?
Options include finance internships, such as Morgan Stanley and Federal Reserve Bank of New York, media and entertainment internships, such as NBCUniversal, Warner Music Group, and Universal Music Group, publishing internships, such as HarperCollins, museum and arts internships, such as the Met, MoMA, Cooper Hewitt, and Whitney Museum, government internships, such as NYC SIP, and biomedical research fellowships, such as Columbia SURF, NYU SURP, and Rockefeller SURF.
Are there paid summer internships in NYC for college students?
Yes, all internships on this list are paid or offer stipends, with Morgan Stanley paying up to $52.89 per hour, the Met paying $24 per hour plus a housing stipend, NYC SIP paying up to $935 per week for graduate interns, and Rockefeller SURF providing $6,500 plus free housing.
Which NYC internships are best for students interested in arts and culture?
The Met, MoMA, Cooper Hewitt, and Whitney Museum all offer structured summer internships inside leading New York cultural institutions, covering areas such as curatorial work, education, exhibitions, conservation, and digital media.
Which NYC summer internships are open to students from outside New York?
NYU SURP provides full funding including housing, meals, and travel for non-NYU domestic students, Rockefeller SURF includes free on-campus housing, and the Met offers a $1,500 housing and travel stipend, making these three particularly accessible for students relocating from outside New York City.
Which internships have the earliest application deadlines?
Federal Reserve Bank of New York closes in October, HarperCollins closes October 10, NBCUniversal closes in early December, and Whitney Museum closes in late November, so students targeting these programs should begin preparing applications in the summer or early fall semester.
When should I apply to summer internships in NYC for college students?
Students should begin researching in the summer before the internship year, as several programs, including Federal Reserve Bank of New York (October), HarperCollins (October 10), and NBCUniversal (early December), close their applications months before the summer begins, while others, such as MoMA (March 1) and Cooper Hewitt (February 9), have later deadlines.
One other option - the Lumiere Research Scholar Program
If you’re interested in pursuing independent research, consider applying to one of the Lumiere Research Scholar Programs, selective online high school programs for students founded with researchers at Harvard and Oxford. Last year, we had over 4,000 students apply for 500 spots in the program! You can find the application form here, check out students’ reviews of the program here and here.
Also check out the Lumiere Research Inclusion Foundation, a non-profit research program for talented, low-income students. Last year, we had 150 students on full need-based financial aid!
Stephen is one of the founders of Lumiere and a graduate of Harvard College, where he earned an A.B. in Statistics. He founded Lumiere as a PhD student at Harvard Business School. Lumiere is a selective research program where students work 1-1 with a research mentor to develop an independent research paper.