For the second consecutive year, the Advanced Computing Systems Research Program (ACS) in the NSA Research Directorate is joining with their counterparts in the High-Performance Computing Solutions (HPCS) and Operations (OPS) organizations to provide a select number of undergraduate students with an exciting eight-week internship opportunity.
ACS is part of the Laboratory for Physical Sciences and is located in the Research Park building complex adjacent to the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.
The Future Computing Summer Internship will focus on high-performance computing (HPC), a field critical to national security, discovery, and technological innovation. The goal of the internship is to encourage talented undergraduate students to pursue study and careers in HPC by engaging them in exciting, ongoing technical projects and by cultivating their talents during an eight-week summer internship.
This internship experience is ideal for students who will be completing their junior year (spring 2024 graduates) and is well suited for students in math, computer science, computer engineering, or related STEM fields.
Program Overview
As participants in the eight-week program (June 12–August 4, 2023, in Catonsville, Maryland), the interns will work in small groups led by NSA technical experts on HPC and future computing problems that are of importance to the NSA. The interns will conduct hands-on technical work on projects spanning disciplines such as, but not limited to, electrical and computer engineering, software engineering, and applied mathematics.
Under mentorship by NSA experts from ACS, HPCS, and OPS and using the same HPC systems as ACS researchers, interns will gain skills in a variety of areas relevant to HPC. In the past, these areas have included algorithm development, optimization and performance tuning, parallel and distributed programming, and computational math and science.
In addition to being immersed in technical projects in HPC-related fields, interns will attend seminars on current NSA research projects, topics in HPC and future computing, and the work-life at NSA. Interns will also take field trips to a variety of labs and other facilities.
Throughout the internship, participants will learn about the NSA mission and the wide range of career opportunities at the agency and will have ample time to engage with their peers and mentors as well as a diverse set of NSA employees.
At the end of the internship, the interns will present the results of their work and write a technical paper documenting their results.
Minimum Program Requirements
- US citizenship
- Some experience using Linux
- Command line skills: basic knowledge of the terminal using a shell such as tcsh or Bash
- Scripting or programming experience in at least one language
- Ability to work as part of a technical team
- Positive attitude and a strong desire to learn
Additional Desired Skills
- Strong communication skills (written and/or oral)
- HPC or parallel programming experience
- C or systems programming experience
- Interesting or novel perspectives—Can you expand our horizons?
Application Window
- October 31, 2022 – 11:59 p.m. ET on January 31, 2023
If you are unsure whether you meet the program requirements, or if you have any questions, you can contact HPC_Internships@lps.umd.edu. The NSA does not want to miss someone because they meet requirements in a way we did not anticipate.
For more information on funding, transportation, FAQ, and more, visit the Future Computing Summer Internship page.