Summer Research- Any benefit while applying for Selective schools?

It also seems that it is getting increasingly more difficult for college students to obtain good summer internships. It appears that those who have had previous internship experience have a leg up in obtaining them in college/earlier in college. Not sure if that’s true with the biological lab sciences, though.

My kids was in high contention for what would have been a prestigious summer internship as a high schooler that would have meant a similar adjustment – my relocating to the new location and working from there (not remotely, but my employer had a location there) and paying for summer lodging. It was something that we very seriously considered and that I was willing to do. It turned out that he was one of two final contenders and the position was offered to the other person who I believe was a college student, rather than a high schooler. But to us it seemed like a sacrifice worth making had it come through. But of course, that’s my bias showing and may be why I am responding as I am!