10+ Paid Internship Opportunities Available for Santa Cruz County Young Adults
Landing a first job is hard. Landing one that pays, teaches you something useful, and connects you to people in your own community is even harder. The AHSC Internship Opportunity Program was built to close that gap for young adults across Santa Cruz County.
The program offers paid, hands-on internships with local businesses and nonprofits in fields like technology, media, marketing, sustainability, and more. Interns are paid for their work, mentored by a supervisor, and supported by Santa Cruz Works and Cabrillo College from start to finish.
What is AHSC?
AHSC stands for Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities. The City of Santa Cruz received an AHSC grant and awarded a workforce development portion of it to Santa Cruz Works to fund local internships. The program launched in June 2025 as a partnership between the City of Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz Works, and DigitalNEST. Cohort 2 is beginning this fall in partnership with Cabrillo College.
What companies are hiring?
Clean Oceans International
Coastwoods Real Estate/Legacy Property
GeoPulse Solutions Inc.
KRML
Line Mobility
Mission Hill Creamery
People First of Santa Cruz
SCC Animal Shelter Foundation
SC MOD
Tannery World Dance and Cultural Center (TWDCC)
Treeswax
United Way of Santa Cruz County
Who can apply?
The program is open to young adults ages 18 to 24 who live in underserved communities in Santa Cruz County. Priority goes to residents of neighborhoods including:
Beach Flats
Lower Ocean
Live Oak
Watsonville and the Pajaro Valley
There is no cost to apply.
What does the internship look like?
Paid work: Interns earn wages from their host employer. Santa Cruz Works and the City of Santa Cruz fund those wages through the grant, reimbursing employers $5,000 to $10,000 per intern.
About six months long: Start and end dates are set by each employer and intern, and all internships must wrap up by June 1, 2027.
Flexible hours: Anywhere from 10 to 20 hours per week, agreed on by the employer and intern.
Real mentorship: Each intern has a dedicated supervisor, regular one on one check-ins, and meaningful projects that build skills over time.
What past interns gained
The first cohort placed young adults at organizations across the county, and their experiences show the range of what is possible:
Yuliana Morales-Galvan worked as a Software Engineering Intern at Nurbli, improving features that support Indigenous families whose languages often lack digital tools.
Emily Ramirez, Social Media and Outreach Intern at Clean Oceans International, saw firsthand how good storytelling can rally people around a cause.
Elsa Tamayo built communications experience as a Marketing and Communications Intern at Siena House.
Julian Cabadas created social content at Mission Hill while learning how a local business grows online.
Employers have seen the value too. The Santa Cruz Children's Museum of Discovery praised its video editing intern, Edgar, for both his editing talent and his remarkable people skills. Read more impact stories here.
Why it matters for our community
Internships like these open doors that are often closed to young people without connections or the ability to work for free. Participants leave with paid experience, a stronger resume, professional references, and in many cases a path to a full time role. Local employers gain fresh ideas and extra capacity, and the county builds a stronger homegrown workforce.
How to get involved
If you are age 18 to 24:
Check the open internships and apply on the AHSC internship page.
Cabrillo College students can complete the Student Interest Form.
If you know someone who qualifies: Share this article with a friend, family member, student, or neighbor. Word of mouth is one of the best ways to reach young adults who could benefit.
If you are an employer: Employer applications for this cohort are closed, but you can join the waitlist to hear about future cohorts.
Questions?
Reach out to the program team:
Doug Erickson, Santa Cruz Works: derickson@santacruzworks.org
Malina Long, Santa Cruz Works: malina@santacruzworks.org
Desha Staley-Raatior, Cabrillo College: destaley@cabrillo.edu
Patricia Greenway, Cabrillo College: pabautis@cabrillo.edu
Learn more about the full program at santacruzworks.org/ahsc.
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