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Internship Programs

Hands-on internships for Bay Area youth

About Our Internships

We offer paid, hands-on internships for youth through our three community shops: a bike shop, a boat shop, and a cafe. Our internships provide a safe, inclusive learning environment for youth to practice vocational skills and develop social and emotional skills, including curiosity, self-awareness, leadership, and problem solving.

Youth are trained by Waterside’s supportive and caring staff members, gaining work experience that is applicable to a wide variety of careers in retail, customer service, and the trades. Upon completion of an internship, we support youth as they plan for independent employment and post-secondary education opportunities.

Street Level Cycles Internships

Street Level Cycles is our youth bicycle mechanics and bicycle reuse program. Interns learn professional bike repair by refurbishing used bicycles, which are redistributed back to the community as affordable, sustainable transportation. Youth also help community members fix their own bicycles in our free, do-it-yourself Open Shop workspace. Each year we refurbish, reuse, or recycle over 1,000 unwanted bicycles, and over 1,300 community members utilize our Open Shop. 

Graduates of our bicycle education programs have found employment in mechanical repair trades, including in the bike and automotive industries.

VISIT STREET LEVEL CYCLES

Berkeley Boathouse Internships

Berkeley Boathouse helps youth develop vocational skills in the areas of woodworking and construction, while providing a real-world application for product design, physics, and geometry. Youth interns regularly take the boats that they have built out on the Berkeley Aquatic Park, and they provide boat rentals to the general public.

Graduates of our boat program have found employment in the construction industry and in union training programs.

Visit Berkely Boathouse

Waterside Cafe Internships

Waterside Cafe is our barista training program, where youth prepare espresso drinks and sell locally made pastries to the general public. Youth are responsible for ordering supplies, maintaining a clean foodservice environment, and serving customers.

Graduates of our cafe program have found employment in the food service industry, including local restaurants and cafes.

Note: This program is currently closed due to construction impacts on Bolivar Drive. We expect to reopen Waterside Cafe in 2024.

VISIT WATERSIDE CAFE