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Some thoughts/comments below. I work with teenagers and young adults who are similar to you, ie. intelligent, passionate about CS, but a bit lost. 1) Think about what you want out of an internship. Money? experience? How does it fit with what you'd want to do/try next? 2) If you live in an area with a small/non-existent tech scene, then you need to expand your social circles. This usually means reaching out to other engineers etc, ask for a face-to-face call. Don't ask for a job (yet), just advice. It shows you're a real person, not just a Github handle, and you'll leave an impression on them. You will get a ton of rejection early on, but if you set your expectations low, you'll still come out ahead. If it's possible, travel to a bigger city to attend events for a weekend, etc. Maybe even give talks about your work/etc. 3) Part of the problem right now is that your so different that people don't know which box to put you in. So you'll have to work harder on signaling to alleviate their confusion. For example, some may think you're likely immature and hard to manage because you're 16. Others might think they can't retain you, so there's no point in investing in you. In some cases, they may even feel threatened by your successes and accomplishments. Try to leave your age out of discussions, and focus more on the objective elements to your experiences/interests. 4) I'd avoid getting your info from social media, as it tends to attract a certain type of users, and their opinions do not reflect real life. This is probably one of the most common problems I have to deal with, which is expanding students information diet and how to critically appraise what they're seeing/hearing. 5) Easier said than done, but don't get too discouraged by the feeling of being stuck. You're actually ahead and just dealing with problems that others will inevitably deal with as well, just a few years/decades ahead haha. The early rejections/setbacks will hurt, but you're actually building resilience in ways that you won't appreciate until you're much older. Overall, the important thing to work on constantly is to connect with folks who will advocate on your behalf and open doors for you. Good luck and keep at it! |