Every year, the NASA Office of STEM Engagement offers hundreds of internship opportunities to students of all education levels nationwide. If you’re a high-schooler interested in working with NASA and exploring careers in science, you can apply to NASA internships for high school students and gain valuable experience in your field.
There are several high school NASA internships to choose from. In this article, we’ll go into detail about the top 10. We’ll consider the benefits of NASA summer high school internships and recommend a couple of classes you can enroll in to learn about NASA’s space program while you’re in high school.
Can High School Students Access NASA Internships?
With its one-stop OSSI platform, NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement allows high school students to apply to multiple NASA internship programs with a single application. To apply, you must meet NASA’s eligibility requirements. You must be a US citizen, 16 years old at the time of application, a full-time student, and have a minimum grade point average of 3.0.
Are There NASA Summer High School Internships?
Yes, NASA holds its high school internship programs in the summer to avoid conflict with the high school curriculum. The summer internship session starts in May or early June and runs until August. The application deadline is in March, but you should plan to submit your cover letter at least three to four months before then due to the high competition for internships.
Why Are Internships Important for High School Students?
- Career development. Internships provide an opportunity to gain relevant experience, professional skills, and acclimate to the workplace. You’ll master soft skills like communication and teamwork, which are critical for a productive career.
- College application. Participating in internships is a good way to distinguish yourself from other students in the applicant pool. Interning with a top organization like NASA is even more impressive and can open doors to many further educational opportunities.
- Network. An internship program, especially one as prestigious as NASA’s, is a great place to connect with professionals, graduate students, and interns alike who can motivate you and help you advance your career.
- Career exploration. Internships let you experience the day-to-day life of people in your potential future career. Your experience in the internship can help you decide whether a career path is right for you.
- Employment. If you perform well during your internship, you could potentially secure permanent employment with NASA. If you’d rather work as a civil servant or private contractor, a letter of recommendation from your NASA mentor will look amazing on job applications.
Top 10 High School NASA Internships
Vehicle Simulation Development
- Location: Langley Research Center, Virginia
- Length: 10 weeks
- Time Commitment: 40 hours per week
In this internship program, you’ll work with scientists and engineers in NASA’s Simulation Development and Analysis Branch. Here, you’ll create flight simulations for NASA researchers and third parties. You’ll be assigned a task on a real project, and will learn how to use software development processes and engineering principles to create reusable simulation models.
Research on Aeronautics Contributions to Wildfire Management
- Location: Ames Research Center, California
- Length: 10 weeks
- Time Commitment: 40 hours per week
During this internship, you’ll collaborate with NASA experts to develop novel ways to use aeronautics to monitor, manage, and reduce wildfires. You’ll consider the rising temperatures in wildfire-prone areas like California and develop reports on how climate change affects wildfires and vice versa.
NASA GES DISC Video Outreach
- Location: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Maryland
- Length: 10 weeks
- Time Commitment: 40 hours per week
The Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center (GES DISC) publishes guides on using and analyzing its data. In this program, you’ll convert these guides into video content for GES DISC. To apply for this program, you must be proficient with computer video editing software, know how to analyze data, and have basic knowledge of earth science.
Molten Regolith Electrolysis
- Location: NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida
- Length: 10 weeks
- Time Commitment: 40 hours per week
Lunar metals are rich in oxygen, but it takes a complex process called molten regolith electrolysis to extract them. In this program, you will work with other engineering students to develop a blueprint for a Molten Regolith Electrolysis demonstration unit. You’ll also build a prototype, test it, and make recommendations for future designs.
Imaging Gravity Waves
- Location: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Maryland
- Length: 10 weeks
- Time Commitment: 40 hours per week
NASA scientists and engineers are working on creating images using gravitational waves. Your job as an intern in this program will be to assist them in determining the requirements, processes, and opportunities of this project. This internship is available to current students in 10th to 12th grade.
Precipitation Research and Validation
- Location: NASA Wallops Flight Facility, Virginia
- Length: 10 weeks
- Time Commitment: 40 hours per week
In this internship program, you’ll work with NASA technicians and scientists at the Wallops GPM Precipitation Research Facility to measure and predict precipitation. You’ll use rain gauges, disdrometers, and weather radar to calculate the size, distribution, and velocity of remote-sensed precipitation.
Connecting the Local Urban Fabric to Global Climate Change
- Location: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Maryland
- Length: 10 weeks
- Time Commitment: 40 hours per week
You must be a current high school sophomore or higher to access this program. You’ll work closely with a mentor and other scientists to investigate the relationship between changes in the urban fabric and the environment. You’ll also conduct field research, assess the quality and accuracy of NASA satellite data, and create maps.
Astrophysics Projects Research
- Location: NASA headquarters, DC
- Length: 10 weeks
- Time Commitment: 40 hours per week
In this program, you’ll work with the agency’s Astrophysics Division to unlock the secrets of the universe. You’ll explore far-away planets with the James Webb, Roman, and Hubble Space Telescopes, analyze the data from your observations, draw up project summaries, write reports, and present your findings.
Software Code Coverage
- Location: Independent Verification and Validation Facility, West Virginia
- Length: 10 weeks
- Time Commitment: 40 hours per week
The IVV offers this program to high school students interested in pursuing a computer science major. During the internship, participants test source code using Rapita Software Code Coverage to ensure that all requirements are complete and no unnecessary code deploys. Students will learn about teamwork and how to tailor commercial software to individual needs.
Earth Observation Applications for Resiliency
- Location: Goddard Space Flight Center, Maryland
- Length: 10 weeks
- Time Commitment: 40 hours per week
NASA’s numerous remote sensing platforms, such as satellites and aircraft, have gathered massive volumes of data about Earth’s physical, chemical, and biological processes over the years. As an intern in this program, your responsibility is to turn that data into usable information to tackle emerging difficulties posed by climate change.
NASA Classes for High School Students
Research at NASA covers a broad spectrum of studies, including astrobiology, applied physics, and aeronautics. You won’t find these courses in high school, so enthusiastic students must enroll in additional courses to study these specialized topics. In the section below, we’ve included the top courses for high school students on NASA-related topics.
- Astrobiology: Exploring Other Worlds by The University of Arizona. This course addresses the age-old question of life outside earth. You’ll delve deep into the field of astrobiology to identify the factors that made it possible for life to emerge on earth and the possibility of the same process repeating itself on exoplanets.
- The Science of the Solar System by Caltech. In this course, you’ll learn the fundamental principles of planetary science. You’ll explore the chemical, biological, and geological characteristics of planets in our solar system and consider the possibility of life elsewhere.
- Astro 101: Black Holes by the University of Alberta. Black holes happen to be the most mysterious phenomenon in our universe. In this course, we’ll consider what they are, how they form, and how scientists detect them.
- Understanding Einstein: The Special Theory of Relativity by Stanford University. In this course, you’ll learn about Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity, what it means, how it evolved, and its implication for space travel.
- Analyzing the Universe by Rutgers University. In this course, you’ll make use of NASA data to explore the universe and all its wonders. You’ll consider neutron stars, black holes, quasars, and supernovae.
Should You Do an Internship in High School?
Yes, internships are an incredibly valuable opportunity to practice your skills, learn more about a future career path, and grow your network. You should do one at every chance you get. As well as internships, you can also enroll in coding bootcamps or massive open online courses (MOOCs) like you would find on Udemy or Coursera to gain hands-on experience in a field.
NASA Internships for High School Students FAQ
Partnership for Public Service ranks NASA as the best place to work in the federal government. Most of the work you do at NASA will be meaningful and rewarding. Previous interns describe their internship as exciting and challenging. You’ll get to meet leading scientists and researchers and assist them with their projects.
Wolf Cukier, a student of Scarsdale high school, New York, discovered the planet TOI 1338 b on the third day of his internship at NASA. He had been assigned to the Goddard Space Flight Center and was looking through satellite data when he noticed an anomaly that turned out to be a new planet.
Yes, the STEM community respects NASA internships. Simply having one on your resume will put you miles ahead of other applicants for future jobs. Even if you don’t work with NASA, you’ll find it easier to get jobs in the civil service or with private contractors. Considering their prestige, it should be no surprise that NASA internships are also tough to come by and very competitive.
NASA does not disclose the actual amount of the stipend for its paid internships, only mentioning that it varies with academic level. However, Glassdoor estimates that NASA interns make an average of $18 per hour. NASA also has unpaid internship programs.
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