Academic Internships
Department of Defense College Acquisition Internship Program is a paid, 10- to 12- week summer internship that provides students with real-world exposure to Department of Defense acquisition workforce career opportunities. The program targets full-time second- and third-year students currently enrolled in an undergraduate program at an accredited college or university. Interns receive hands-on, practical experience in analysis, research, report writing, oral briefings, policy development, program analysis, and computer applications. Student interns gain experience in career fields available within the Acquisition workforce such as: Engineering, Contracting, Logistics, Business - Financial Management, Business - Cost Estimating, Information Technology, Test & Evaluation, Industrial Contract Property Management, Purchasing, Science and Technology, Production, Quality and Manufacturing, Facilities Engineering, and Program Management.
Naval Research Enterprise Internship Program: This 10-week internship program is designed to provide opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students to participate in research under the guidance of an appropriate research mentor at a participating Navy laboratory.
Science and Engineering Apprenticeship Program places high school students in Department of Navy (DoN) laboratories where they take part in real Naval research for eight weeks during the summer. SEAP gives academically talented sophomores, juniors, and seniors interested in STEM the opportunity to learn about Naval research and technology while receiving first-class mentoring by top scientists and engineers. SEAP is a competitive program with around 300 placements in more than 30 laboratories around the country in which many participants go on to careers within the DoN. Interns are selected based upon academic achievement, personal statements, recommendations, and career and research interests.
Science, Mathematics and Research for Transformation (SMART) is a combined educational and workforce development opportunity for STEM students. SMART offers scholarships for undergraduate, master's, and doctoral students pursuing a STEM degree. Scholarship recipients receive full tuition, annual stipends, internships, and guaranteed employment with the Department of Defense after graduation. Applications are open annually from August 1-December 1. The SMART Scholarship builds future leaders in 24 STEM disciplines and is the largest education and workforce development initiative under the Department of Defense STEM Program. Scholarship recipients receive hands-on experience at one of over 200 Department of Defense facilities during their internships and apply this knowledge as early career professionals. Department of Defense facilities are at the forefront of innovation in artificial intelligence, biotechnology, autonomy, cyber, space, 5G, and other technology areas.
The National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate (NDSEG) Fellowship program was established in 1989 by direction of congress as an approach to increasing the number of U.S. citizens receiving doctoral degrees in science and engineering disciplines of military importance. Applicants compete for Fellowship opportunities listed under DoD’s Broad Agency Announcements (BAAs) in research development. The broad research area disciplines include, but are not limited to the following: aeronautical and astronautical engineering, astrodynamics, biomedical engineering, biosciences (includes toxicology); chemical engineering; chemistry; civil engineering; cognitive, neural, and behavioral sciences; computer and computational sciences; electrical engineering; geosciences (includes terrain, water, and air); materials science and engineering; mathematics; mechanical engineering; naval architecture and ocean engineering (includes undersea systems); oceanography (includes ocean acoustics, remote sensing, and marine meteorology); physics (including optics) and space physics.
workforce initiatives
NAVFAC's Semi-Annual Graduate School Project List aligns Civil Engineer Corps (CEC) officer graduate thesis topics with NAVFAC and/or Navy strategy. Graduate student theses and project topics for CEC officers, including current and prospective Naval Postgraduate School students, must be selected from the approved NAVFAC topic list.
ONR's Science Advisor to the Fleet Program enables federal employees at all naval research, development, test, and evaluation (RTD&E) activities to serve as science advisors as a command’s senior liaison with science and technology organizations in government, academia and industry. They communicate needs and requirements back to the Office of Naval Research and the Naval Research Enterprise to help shape science and technology investments. Lastly, advisors leverage the naval science and technology community to provide rapid technology insertions, long-term investment leverage and surge capability in support of high-priority fleet issues. Advisors are selected through a nationwide competition sponsored by the Naval Research Enterprise and serve a one-to-three-year career development tour.
ONR's Science Director Program is part of the Office of Naval Research's Global International Science Program, which employs technically skilled scientists and engineers to enhance the Navy's international science and technology engagement and to increase the Navy´s awareness of global technology. Directors—typically scientists with doctorates working across government, academia and industry—work out of offices around the world to scout technologies for ONR and the Naval Research Enterprise. Director complete a two- to four-year tour in which he/she visits international S&T institutions to develop access and find cutting-edge science and technology, assesses international innovation in areas of naval interest, provides global technical assessment, follows trends in science and technology, and tracks technological development in specific geographical areas. The science director recommends innovative researchers to be awarded research grants.
ONR's Summer Faculty Research Program provides science and engineering faculty members from institutions of higher education the opportunity to participate in research of mutual interest at U.S. Navy laboratories for a 10-week period. Program participants have an opportunity to establish continuing research relationships with the R&D personnel of the host laboratories, which may result in sponsorship of the participant's research at their home institutions. There are three levels of appointment: summer faculty fellow, senior summer faculty fellow, and distinguished summer faculty fellow. Levels of appointment will be determined by a committee of scientists and engineers. Stipends and some expenses are paid. Programs are residential and all work must be completed on site at the sponsoring U.S. Navy Laboratory.