High School Students Broaden Their Futures Through Experiential Learning at Stevens
Internship programs aren’t just for college students anymore – the number of businesses offering internships to high schoolers has grown from 30% in 2018 to 38% in 2023. While many schools are just now embracing this trend, Bergen County Technical High School (BCTHS) has long made internships a core part of its curriculum. As part of its Senior Experience internship program, seniors are required to complete 175 hours of internship experience to earn academic credit.
Kevin Lu, teaching professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Kishore Pochiraju, professor and chair of the Department of Systems and Enterprises, have seen the impact of high school internships firsthand, having mentored dozens of BCTHS students, as well as students from other area schools over the years.
Lu notes the serious, long-term commitment in BCTHS’ Senior Experience program. “For 25 weeks, seniors get a real taste of what research looks like at Stevens,” Lu said. “They are expected to participate actively in the research process one day a week. They’re not just observing, they’re contributing.”
Getting an early, firsthand research experience can help high school students align their studies with their career interests, and faculty mentors provide guidance along the way.
“We help them get involved in real research and development, often in the same labs where Stevens undergraduates and graduate students work,” said Lu.
“Our interns immerse themselves in a layered learning environment,” explained Pochiraju, director of the Prototype Object Fabrication (PROOF) Laboratory. “In my lab, for example, we have undergraduates, grad students and Ph.D. candidates, and these high school students work alongside them.”
Other members of the Stevens’ School of Engineering and Science community participating in the BCTHS Senior Experience program as mentors included: Adeniyi Lawal, professor and department chair of The Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science; Carlo Lipizzi, teaching associate professor and associate chair for Corporate and Continuing Studies in The Department of Systems Engineering; Sally Shady, teaching associate professor and associate chair of Undergraduate Studies in The Department of Biomedical Engineering; Nicholaus Parziale, George Meade Bond Endowed Professor; Yong Shi, associate professor; and assistant professors Chunlei Qu, Jia Mi, Rod Kim and Feng Liu. Ionut Florescu, research professor at the School of Business and Lindsey Cormack, associate professor in the School of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences also served as mentors in the program.
Immersing students in personalized experiential learning opportunities
Two students who already enrolled in an automotive engineering program at BCTHS were eager to apply those skills in a real-world setting.
“When one student expressed a desire to pursue automotive engineering, we supported her with the basic tools, helped her set up design requirements and guided her through design checks,” Pochiraju said. “When she needed specific help, other students in the lab, both undergraduate and graduate, were available to assist. That’s how the lab environment works.”
Mariana Hernandez, a Stevens mechanical engineering doctoral student who works with Pochiraju in the PROOF Lab, is one of these Stevens students.
“We allowed the students to work on a project related to their interests: an autonomous vehicle capable of carrying a payload and navigating a building,” explained Hernandez. “It was an ambitious project, and since Professor Lu's student and our student were close friends, they decided to team up, and I mentored them both.”
Internship programs designed for STEM students also help them see the distinction between fields that are often grouped together in high school.
“High school curricula often combine all engineering into one track,” said Lu. “Through this experience, students start to understand the difference between, say, computer science and computer engineering — and what engineers actually do.”
Creating experiential learning opportunities is core to Stevens’ mission. Through immersive college experiences like Accessing Careers in Engineering and Science (ACES) to enrichment programs intended to inspire a love for mathematics and science, Stevens is dedicated to helping pre-college students explore their ambitions.
Mentorship offers rewards that go beyond the lab
Both Lu and Pochiraju have a long history of mentoring high school students.
Pochiraju reflected on how his early involvement began through outreach programs in the Bronx more than 25 years ago. “Some of those students were the first in their families to consider college. That experience stayed with me,” Pochiraju said.
“It’s a pay-it-forward model. You mentor these students, and someday they’ll mentor someone else,” Lu added.
Hernandez embodies that model. As a teaching assistant for a design and systems thinking class at Stevens, she has guided first-year students through electromechanical projects. But mentoring high school students was a new experience for her.
“These students are already navigating the stress of college applications, and I was challenged to connect on a more personal level,” she said. “It strengthened my empathy, as I learned to support their technical progress and emotional well-being. I offered encouragement, shared practical advice and helped them build confidence in their abilities.”
Meaningful mentorships can extend beyond graduation. For example, both Lu and Pochiraju have stayed connected with students they’ve mentored long after a program has ended, with some enrolling at Stevens and others moving on to other institutions.
“One of my former students is graduating from Carnegie Mellon soon,” said Lu. “We don’t pressure them to come to Stevens — that’s not the point. What matters is they walk away with a better understanding of the field and a network they can lean on.”
As for next year, Pochiraju recently confirmed that three new BCTHS students will join them for internships.
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