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Study Name
Study of Urban Alliance’s High School Internship Program
Study Sharepoint ID
101094
Evaluation name
Evaluation of the Urban Alliance’s High School Internship Program
Intervention (standard name)
Outcome domains examined
Strength of Evidence Tag
Design
Services
Populations targeted
Settings in which the intervention was studied
Subgroups
Subgroup data - Female
No
Subgroup data - Male
No
Subgroup data - White
No
Subgroup data - Black
No
Percent Young Adults
100.00
Percent female
70.29
Percent Male
29.70
Percent Parents
7.00
Percent welfare population
41.04
Percent Asian
2.56
Percent Black or African American
77.03
Percent Hispanic or Latino of any race
17.91
Percent White not Hispanic
1.43
Percent unknown race
1.10
Mean age
17.60
Group formation formatted
Urban Alliance High School Internship Program targeted high school seniors attending specific public and charter schools in underserved communities. Students had to be identified as "at risk" of losing connection to stable career or educational pathways after graduation. Students were required to have attained a sufficient number of academic credits to qualify for an early release schedule, which allowed them to attend work placements during school afternoons. The study randomized 981 students to participate in the internship program and 454 students in the control group.
Study timing formatted
The program was studied over the course of 3 years.
Study funding formatted
U.S. Department of Education Investing in Innovation award.
Sample Characteristics
The sample is high school seniors at risk of economic disconnection.
Implementing organization formatted
Urban Alliance
Program history
The program was in existence prior to the study.
Treatment condition formatted
The Urban Alliance High School Internship Program (HSIP) aimed to empower economically disadvantaged youths through four core components; a) skills training, b) paid work-based learning experiences, c) mentoring and wrap-around support, and d) alumni services. Participants were high school seniors at risk of disconnecting from pathways to self-sufficiency after graduation. Before the start of their internships, students attended prework trainings (three to six weeks) focusing on hard and soft skills. During the internships, the focus of the trainings shifted to life skills and post-high school planning. The internships were with local employers, and most were paid through Urban Alliance, which lasted through the school year and summer after graduation. The program also had mentors who were employees at their internship sites and program coordinators through Urban Alliance who provided dedicated support to a caseload of students.
Comparison condition formatted
The comparison group participants were not invited by Urban Alliance to participate in the High School Internship Program. Most participants in the control group accessed college and career services through regular school channels.
Mandatory services formatted
Soft skills training
Timing of study formatted
Six-month paid internship
Program funding formatted
The Urban Alliance is a national non-profit organization that runs the program.
Setting details formatted
The program was implemented in Baltimore, Maryland; Chicago, Illinois; Washington, District of Columbia; Northern Virginia. The core of the program, paid internship, took place at local employer sites including corporate, government, and nonprofit organizations.
Delivered by public or private entity?
Private
Secondary domains examined
Program participation, program attendance, services received, education preparation (took SAT or ACT, filled out FAFSA, comfort with FAFSA and scholarships, applied to college, applied to two year college, applied to four year college), college attendance (attended college at four years, attended two-year college at four years, attended four-year college at four years), college financials, hardship, job preparation, savings, connection (in school or working, college or vocational program), credit building.
Earliest publication year
2023
Most recent publication year
2025
Manuscripts
Check edits flag
No
Primary Service
Subsidized employment/transitional jobs
Services Unclear
This field is populated using a formula. Do not manually edit.
Enrollment Period
2016 to 2018
Intervention Duration
6.00
Subgroup data - Hispanic
No
State & Region