Learn About Naval Internship Programs

NSWC Carderock Division hosts a submarine race in its 3,200-foot David Taylor Model Basin in November 2021. The STEM event provides an avenue for high school and college teams to tackle the challenges of submarine design, construction, and operation. Naval internships offer programs geared to many career and research interests. (US Navy photo by Monica McCoy)

The Naval Research Enterprise Internship Program will accept applications until November 1, 2023, for the 2024 program. The Patuxent Partnership is helping to publicize NREIP.

NREIP places college and university students in Department of Navy laboratories where they take part in real naval research for 10 weeks during the summer.

The program gives academically talented college students, graduating seniors, and graduate students pursuing STEM careers the opportunity to learn about naval research and technology while receiving first-class mentoring by top scientists and engineers.

NREIP is a competitive program with more than 800 placements in 47 laboratories around the country in which many participants go on to careers within the DoN. Interns are selected based on academic achievement, personal statements, recommendations, and career and research interests.

Applicants must be:

• Enrolled full-time at an accredited four-year college or university.
• Solely US citizens.
• On track to acquire a minimum of 31 credits by the start of the internship. (Eligibility will be determined by the number of credits accrued by the end of the spring semester before the internship start date.)
• Students graduating the spring semester before the internship or later. (Winter graduates are not eligible.)
• Applicants should have demonstrated interest in subjects of study that are relevant to the research conducted by one or more of the laboratories in the program.

Exceptions:

• Students attending two-year colleges in relevant majors and who meet the credit requirements may be eligible at the laboratory’s discretion. Those students should directly contact the laboratory of interest to determine eligibility.
• Some labs make exceptions for permanent residents and dual citizens. Students should check individual lab pages for eligibility.
• High school students taking college courses are not eligible for NREIP but are invited to apply to the Science and Engineering Apprenticeship Program. SEAP is for academically talented sophomores, juniors, and seniors interested in STEM. Among the many participating laboratories are NAWCAD at Patuxent River and NSWC in Indian Head and Dahlgren.

The Patuxent Partnership provides a list of STEM resources and other information about internships and scholarships. Click here.

About The Patuxent Partnership

The Patuxent Partnership is a nonprofit member organization that fosters collaboration between government, industry, and academia to advance education through STEM-based initiatives; to advance technology through speaker programs, forums, and networking; to advance science and technology transfer through the exchange of ideas, information, and data related to technologies; and to increase workforce development through an array of initiatives.

To learn more about The Patuxent Partnership and its programs, visit its Leader member page.