STEM Internships: How to Find and Choose the Right Opportunity

STEM internships give students a chance to use science, technology, engineering or mathematics in a real workplace, on problems that matter to someone other than a grader. You might test software for a company, analyze water samples for a city utility, support an engineering team at a federal agency or build a database for a science nonprofit.

They’re usually short, often a summer or a semester, and supervised. An internship tells you a great deal about a kind of work and a kind of employer before you commit to either. It can also give you concrete things to talk about in your next application.

What an internship involves

Most internships combine assigned work, a supervisor and some structure for learning. Larger employers often run formal programs with a cohort of interns, training sessions and a final presentation. Smaller organizations may simply give you a project and a person to report to. Both can be valuable; what matters is whether the work is real and whether someone helps you learn from it.

Many internships are full time over the summer. Others are part time during the academic year, and some, often called co-ops, alternate full-time work terms with study terms over a longer period.

Industry internships and academic research placements

Both can be STEM experience, but they’re built for different purposes. Some research positions at labs are even called internships, so judge by the work, not the title.

Industry internships and academic research placements compared

Industry internships and academic research placements compared

Consideration	Industry or government internship	Academic research placement
Main goal	Deliver work the organization needs, while you learn	Answer an open research question, while you learn
Typical setting	Company, agency or nonprofit team	University lab, research group or field site
Supervision	A manager or assigned mentor	A faculty member, often with graduate students
What you leave with	Workplace experience and a professional reference	Research skills, possibly a poster or paper, and an academic reference
Most useful for	Testing a career path or employer	Exploring graduate study or a research career

If you’re leaning toward research, our guide to undergraduate research opportunities covers that route, and summer research programs compares structured research summers.

Where STEM internships happen

• Companies, from large technology, engineering, energy and pharmaceutical firms to small startups.
• Federal agencies. The Office of Personnel Management describes its Pathways Internship Program as giving students “opportunities for paid work in agencies and to explore Federal careers.” Federal internships are posted on USAJOBS, which has a dedicated internship portal, and on agency career sites.
• Agency-specific programs. NASA, for example, runs both short-term internships through its Office of STEM Engagement and Pathways internships, according to its internship page.
• State and local government, such as transportation, environmental and public health departments.
• Nonprofits, museums and hospitals, which may offer data, science communication or technical roles.
• Your own college, through campus IT, facilities or research support offices.

Who internships suit

Internships suit almost any STEM student, but timing matters. Some programs are designed for first- and second-year students; others expect coursework that only juniors and seniors have completed. If you’re early in your degree, our guide on STEM internships with no experience covers how to start.

They’re especially useful if you’re unsure which part of your field you want to work in, or whether you’d rather work in industry, government or research.

Eligibility: check before you invest time

Read the eligibility section before you write a word of your application. Three things catch students out.

Citizenship and location are different questions. Where an internship takes place doesn’t settle who can apply. Many federal roles require US citizenship: NASA’s internship page lists US citizenship as a requirement, for example. Some private-sector roles in defense, aerospace or other regulated work have citizenship or security requirements too.

International students need work authorization. If you’re on an F-1 student visa, a US internship generally needs authorization, often through Curricular Practical Training (CPT). According to the Department of Homeland Security’s Study in the States site, CPT must be “an integral part of an established curriculum,” must relate directly to your major, and must be authorized by your school’s designated school official before you begin work. Speak to your international student office early. This is general information, not immigration advice.

Academic requirements vary. Programs may set a minimum GPA, a year of study or completed courses. NASA’s internship page, for instance, lists a 3.0 minimum GPA for its Office of STEM Engagement internships and 2.9 for Pathways.

Pay, and when unpaid internships are allowed

Many STEM internships are paid, and many federal and agency programs advertise pay or stipends. Don’t assume, though. Check the posting, and ask if it’s unclear.

Unpaid internships at for-profit companies are governed in the US by the Fair Labor Standards Act. The Department of Labor’s Fact Sheet #71 explains that it uses a “primary beneficiary test” to decide whether an intern is really an employee who must be paid. Its factors include whether the internship is tied to your formal education, whether it accommodates your academic calendar, and whether your work complements rather than displaces paid employees. The fact sheet notes that unpaid internships at public sector and nonprofit charitable organizations, where the intern volunteers without expecting pay, are generally permissible. States can have additional rules. This is general information, not legal advice.

Even when an unpaid role is lawful, it may not be practical. Factor in housing, transportation and lost earnings before you accept one.

Where to look

1. Your college’s career center and job platform. Employers recruiting at your college often post here first.
2. Employers’ own career pages. If you know which organizations interest you, go straight to the source.
3. USAJOBS and agency sites for federal internships.
4. Professional societies in your field, many of which list student opportunities.
5. Faculty and alumni, who often hear about openings before they’re widely posted.

Protect yourself from scams. A genuine internship won’t ask you to pay to be hired or to buy equipment from the employer before you start. Be cautious about any offer made without an interview, and verify unfamiliar employers independently.

Preparing your application

Most applications ask for a résumé, sometimes a cover letter, and occasionally a short technical exercise or portfolio.

• Lead with projects. Class projects, personal coding projects, competitions and lab work show what you can do. Our guide to the STEM internship résumé covers how to describe them, and the STEM internship résumé template gives you a one-page structure.
• Match the posting. Use the same terms for skills and tools that the posting uses, honestly.
• Prepare examples. Interviewers often ask how you handled a problem, worked in a team or learned something quickly. Short, specific stories work best.

An invented teaching example: a student applying for a data-analysis internship describes a class project in one line. “Cleaned and analyzed a 50,000-row public transit dataset in Python; built a dashboard showing weekday ridership by route.” That’s more persuasive than “Familiar with Python and data analysis,” because it shows the skill in use.

Comparing offers

When you have more than one option, compare them on the same points. The STEM internship comparison worksheet lays this out side by side.

• The work. What will you actually do in a typical week?
• Supervision. Who will you report to, and how often will you meet?
• Pay and costs. Pay, housing support, relocation help and the cost of living where you’d be based.
• Learning. Is there training, a mentor or a chance to present your work?
• Next steps. Do interns sometimes receive return offers? Ask, but treat any answer as information rather than a promise.

Common questions

When should I start looking?

Earlier than you might think. Some larger employers and federal programs recruit many months before a summer internship begins, while smaller organizations may hire closer to the start date. Check each posting’s deadline.

Is an internship better than research?

Neither is better in general. An internship tests a career path; research tests your interest in investigation and graduate study. Choose based on what you want to learn next.

Can I do an internship during the semester?

Often, yes, if your schedule allows. Part-time and remote internships exist, and some programs offer academic credit. Check how credit affects your tuition and financial aid.

What if I don’t get one this year?

Plenty of students don’t on their first try. A campus job, a research position, a personal project or a relevant course can all strengthen next year’s application.

A practical next step

Pick three organizations whose work interests you. Find each one’s student or internship page, and note who is eligible, when applications open and what the application asks for. That list tells you what to prepare first.