How this student found his dream internship…
It usually happens on the drive home from practice.
Or maybe while you're standing around the kitchen island eating dry cereal out of the box (we all do it, so no judgment).
You casually ask your teen what they’re thinking about for college, and they look at you, completely deadpan.
"I want to design airplane engines."
Or maybe it's, "I want to be a trauma nurse/ lawyer/architect/pilot."
You smile and put on your most supportive face. "That's amazing, honey!"
But inside?
Your stomach drops… because your teen isn’t sitting on a pile of 4.0 GPA/36 ACT glitter.
They’re probably solid. And capable. But more like an “above average smart” in the most normal, wonderful way.
And they just announced they want a highly professional path. Engineering. Nursing. Business. Pre-med. Architecture. Aviation.
You know... the paths where the programs are fiercely competitive and the gatekeeping is very, very real. That’s when you feel that slow, creeping realization: your teen's dream and their current stats are not exactly holding hands.
Most parents think this is the moment they have to either a) burst their kid's bubble, or b) panic-hire a tutor for 14 hours a day.
I don’t recommend either.
What your teen actually needs right now is a reality check wrapped in a game plan. But here is the kicker: they simply won’t hear it from you. Not really (though they may smile and nod.)
If you tell them their test scores need work, it's a personal attack. But if an outside expert tells them, it becomes "insider strategy." (I don't make the rules of teenage psychology; I just utilize them to your benefit!)
Let me show you exactly what this looks like behind the scenes.
✈️
Case Study: The Capable Kid
with Aeronautical Dreams
I started working with this junior back in January.
Great kid with a big goal: aeronautical engineering.
Which is slightly problematic.
His current test scores are too low for mid-tier engineering schools, and admissions officers don’t get to sit in your living room and see how passionate your kid is; they only see numbers and evidence. Without a sharp left turn, he’ll be forced to switch his major before he even buys that extra-long twin sheet set.
He is right in the "middle zone", where students drift toward aiming too low out of fear, or aiming too high without a plan.
So, after some highly strategic parental nudging (read: gentle bribery), he hopped on Zoom with me. In a single 60-minute session, we pulled not one, but three very specific levers.
Lever 1: The $40,000 Reframe 🤝
Most families treat test prep like the junk drawer.
You know it's there; you know you need to deal with it, but you avoid it until it becomes an emergency.
This student wasn't a great test taker (heck, not many 16-year-olds are when it comes to the ACT or SAT, which is unlike other tests they've taken for years). And, no, he wasn't exactly thrilled to spend his weekends doing hours of practice sections.
So, I gave him a "vaccine" against the dread. I asked him:
"Have you ever been paid $10,000 for a month or two of work?"
He laughed and said no.
So I did the math for him; if he brought his ACT score up by just 6 points, it could equal $10,000 a year in merit scholarships.
That’s a $40,000 payout for studying.
Suddenly, test prep wasn't a punishment; it was a highly lucrative side hustle.👊
I left his mom a voice note after our session (just like I always do). She later messaged me back, completely stunned. Apparently, the day after our session, her son walked into the room and announced, "I must sign up for this test prep course Christy suggested. I’ve done a couple of practice runs, and I can see where I’m going wrong with these tests."
That is the magic of the outside voice.
No emotional friction. No "Mom nagging."
Just Christy showing him the money.
Lever 2: The Opportunity Map and…
This very same student also wants to specialize in airplane engines, but he has zero real-world proof.
He hadn't even shadowed anyone for an hour, which is a great, baseline starting point.
So, we hit Google with one mission: find him a place to shadow, intern, or get his hands dirty. We didn’t stop until we found:
One of the biggest aeronautics employers in the country — Lockheed Martin — was sitting right in his backyard. (He had no idea.)
And because big companies attract ecosystems, we quickly found seven (7!) other related companies also within a 30-minute radius.
Boom. Instant target list.
Which brings up the next problem: how does a regular, non-Nepo-baby kid get access?
…The Third Door 🔑
Imagine trying to get into an exclusive nightclub. The First Door is the main entrance, where 99% of people wait in a massive line praying to the bouncer gods. The Second Door is the VIP line – for the rich and famous who stroll right to the front.
Well, my student isn’t a VIP, but also doesn’t want to wait in line…
… so we strategized the Third Door for him.
If you're unfamiliar with the term, the Third Door is the small side entrance for the scrappy kids who skip the line, sneak down the alley, crack open a window, or find an unlocked door, and wiggle their way inside. (A few examples include Steven Spielberg, who famously snuck onto the Universal Studios lot as a teen. He just walked past security and behaved like he belonged. Or Taylor Swift, who played every small venue she could and built relationships with fans and radio stations long before being “discovered.”)
During our session, he set up his LinkedIn profile, and we mapped out how to ethically use his close family’s professional network to start opening windows.
Lever 3: The Airplane Engine (A 10-Minute Miracle) 🙌
At the end of our session (yup. still the same session!), we still had ten minutes left. I asked him what his absolute dream summer project would be.
"I really want to rebuild a plane engine," he said.
In his head, he was picturing buying a massive engine and sticking it in his family's garage — a truly terrifying prospect for his mother.
It felt like an impossible, expensive dream for a 16-year-old, so I flipped the script.
Instead of asking, "How are you going to do this?" I asked,
"How do we find someone who already has one?"
So, we brainstormed how to hunt down the ultimate mentor: a local retiree with a massive tool chest, strong opinions on aviation, and a plane parked in the backyard. Someone who might just want an eager apprentice to hold the flashlight and soak up some knowledge.
You should have seen his face. A whole new world opened up.
In ten minutes, his impossible daydream became a scavenger hunt with a treasure map.
🌟
The 18-Month Rule: Why You Cannot Wait Until Summer
Here is a little-known insider detail that surprises most students (and even parents): The best internships — the A-list names that future hiring managers recognize instantly — do not hire interns two months in advance.
The most competitive companies book their internships a year and a half before they happen.
Families constantly say, "We're swamped right now. We'll focus on this when school gets out." But if you wait until April or May of your teen's junior year to start hunting for opportunities, no one can help them get a great internship that summer. That ship hasn't just sailed; it's halfway across the ocean.
This is exactly why starting early — in January or February (or this weekend!) of junior year — is an absolute cheat code. By reaching out to a company like Lockheed Martin now, my student might not land a spot for this July, but he is perfectly positioning himself to secure that internship for the summer before his freshman year of college.
January, February, and March give runway. A runway gives leverage. And leverage gives choices.
✍🏻
The Part Where You Outsource the Stress
When you have one-on-one support (from someone who isn't you), your teen gets a fresh perspective, insider knowledge, and a total bypass of family friction.
If your teen is capable but aiming at a competitive major, it’s worth looking at their positioning sooner rather than later. It can be as simple as a quick, 30-minute, no-obligations chat where we get clear on:
What actually matters to you right now
What can be moved quickly
Exactly what your teen should do next
With perspective, a knack for hunting down airplane engines, and a solid Third Door strategy.
Christy Sharafinski
Your go-to college essay + admissions mentor
P.S. If you’ve recently heard “We’re good, we’ve got this down for the second half of the year,” forward this to the parent… Later is expensive. Early is powerful. 🛬
👋 Hi, if we haven't met yet, I'm Christy. I help students craft standout essays so they can submit their best possible applications with confidence.
Wanna chat? www.calendly.com/easiercollegeessays/30min
