Internships
Jobs for Youth Summer Internship Program
The Jobs for Youth Summer Internship places Jobs for Youth Members aged 18-21 in County Departments for 8-10 weeks. Internship opportunities are available in a variety of different disciplines ranging from Human Resources, IT, Accounting & Finance, and more! Summer interns will receive mentoring from government leaders and work on projects that foster their professional development.
Program Details
Eligibility: San Mateo County resident, JFY Member*, 18 to 21 years old
Duration: June through August (approximately 8-10 weeks)
Hours: JFY Summer Internship positions vary anywhere between 20-40 hours per week. This is determined on a case-by-case basis, and agreed upon between the intern and the hiring division.
Location: Positions are available in several departments and may include placements in Belmont, Daly City, East Palo Alto, Half Moon Bay, Menlo Park, Redwood City, San Carlos, San Mateo, and South San Francisco. Hybrid positions are also available but will depend on the department and division.
JFY Summer Internship Applications for 2025 are now CLOSED.
Applications will open early 2026.
To apply for the JFY Internship Program, you must attend the required JFY Summer Internship Orientation session. For upcoming orientation dates, please refer to our Youth Registration Form to view upcoming VIRTUAL sessions. Orientation sessions for Summer 2026 will begin in early 2026.
JFY Summer Internship Offerings
Buddy Program
The Buddy Program pairs JFY Summer Interns from different departments together to connect on their own terms. Buddies are intended to be a support system, and to have someone else who is going through a similar experience to bounce ideas off of. JFY simply makes the introduction, and lets the interns go from there!
1:1 Career Coaching
JFY Summer Interns are offered an opportunity to connect one-on-one with a career coach at the County. Throughout the session interns can explore their own values and interests that are related to their career aspirations.
Speaker Series
The Speaker Series offering is for JFY Summer Interns to meet and learn from various individuals who offer unique perspectives. Some speakers have included former JFY interns who are now full-time County employees and the current HR Director who started at the County as an intern!
JFY Summer Internship Offerings
Buddy Program
The Buddy Program pairs JFY Summer Interns from different departments together to connect on their own terms. Buddies are intended to be a support system, and to have someone else who is going through a similar experience to bounce ideas off of. JFY simply makes the introduction, and lets the interns go from there!
1:1 Career Coaching
JFY Summer Interns are offered an opportunity to connect one-on-one with a career coach at the County. Throughout the session interns can explore their own values and interests that are related to their career aspirations.
Speaker series
The Speaker Series offering is for JFY Summer Interns to meet and learn from various individuals who offer unique perspectives. Some speakers have included former JFY interns who are now full-time County employees and the current HR Director who started at the County as an intern!
County Host Departments
We strive to partner with as many departments as possible each year to give youth opportunities to gain experience in the fields they are most interested in. To learn more about the departments that hosted interns, please click the links below:
Meet some of our interns!
— Erika, Human Resources
— Frankie, SamCERA
(Retirement Department)
— Deysi, Supervisor Corzo's Office
Other County Internships
The County of San Mateo is invested in your future! A number of other internship programs are available.
For more information, visit the HR Internships page.