The Internship Academy at Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School connects classroom learning to the real world. This site is your hub for everything related to the B-CC Internship Academy: how to join, how to find an internship, what to expect as a student intern, and how employers can get involved. Whether you are a student, a family member, or an employer, this page is your starting point.
The B-CC Internship Academy is a year-long course that gives students the chance to explore careers in a real workplace while still in high school. Seniors spend part of their schedule at an internship site and part in class, where they prepare, reflect, and grow as professionals.
Help students explore careers and clarify their interests.
Build employability skills like communication, problem solving, reliability, and teamwork.
Grow students’ professional network by connecting them with mentors and professionals in the community so they can make informed postsecondary decisions and move toward a fulfilling career.
Students do real work, meet real professionals, and leave with experiences that make college, training programs, and jobs feel more concrete and achievable. This is a great way to earn school credit outside of the classroom!
Every student's path looks a little different, but the Internship Academy has two main stages:
1. Internship prep: this includes getting ready for and finding an internship, in the Spring and Summer.
2. Internship experience: participating in the internship while attending a weekly internship class.
Far before the start of the 2026-2027 school year, the internship prep academy supports students on their journey to finding an internship in the Spring. In this phase of the Internship Academy, students will explore interests, polish off their resume, practice interviewing, and ultimately find an internship. After obtaining an internship, students will register their internship and be ready to hit the ground running in the Fall of 2026.
To support this process, the prospective intern cohort will meet several times in the Spring to learn about the internship process, attend an internship fair, and learn how to utilize the available resources. Students will have an opportunity to meet with current interns to learn about their experiences and how they got their current job. Students have access to a database of 400+ employers that other BCC students have interned with. There will be several group resume and interview workshops as well as individual support. A full calendar of important dates and deadlines is available here.
These supports provide access to internships to all BCC students, not just those who already have connections. Our goal is that every student who is interested and committed has a fair chance to participate and succeed.
Beginning the second week of school, students begin regularly attending their internship as part of the school day. At their site, they do real work on real projects, from daily tasks to longer-term assignments. Along the way, they learn how the organization operates, practice communicating with coworkers and clients, and see how professionals in their field solve problems.
At the same time, students continue meeting in their internship class at B-CC. Class time is used to reflect on what is happening at the internship, practice professional skills like communication and time management, and connect experiences at the site to concepts learned in school. Students complete a quarterly project, journals, set goals, share challenges, and support one another as they navigate the workplace.
Throughout the year, supervisors provide feedback through conversations and quarterly formal evaluations. Students use this feedback to understand their strengths, identify areas for growth, and build confidence. By the end of the course, they are not only more prepared for college and careers, but also have a clearer sense of what they want next and how to take the next step.