Undergraduate/Graduate (Summer 2025) – ENRGE Minority Serving Institutions Partnership Program (MSIPP) Student Intern
Posting TitleUndergraduate/Graduate (Summer 2025) – ENRGE Minority Serving Institutions Partnership Program (MSIPP) Student Intern
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LocationCO - Golden
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Position TypeIntern (Fixed Term)
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Hours Per Week40
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Working at NRELThe National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), located at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in Golden, Colorado is the nation's primary laboratory for research and development of renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies.
Join a team of world-class scientists, engineers, and visionaries dedicated to shaping the world’s energy future through cutting-edge research and innovation. From our vision to our NREL community, we are unique in the research community. We are focused on impact. From our work in basic sciences to systems engineering, analysis, demonstration, and deployment, we are focused on solving market-relevant problems that result in advanced, secure, reliable, and affordable energy systems. We are trusted clean energy leaders, developing cost-saving solutions that make U.S. industries more competitive, and support job creation and economic growth across rural and urban communities.
At NREL, we offer a unique, mission-driven work environment with cutting-edge facilities and multidisciplinary research teams. NREL's environment offers strong partnerships with industry, academia, and other national laboratories, as well as professional development opportunities and a competitive benefits package for employees.
Learn about NREL’s critical objectives: NREL's Mission and Vision.
Job Description
The vision of the Enabling Native Researchers in Graduate Education (ENRGE) consortium is to offer opportunities for engineering students with underrepresented backgrounds, such as Native Americans, Black Americans, Asian Americans, Hispanic and Latino Americans, and other minorities to gain experience at NREL’s world-class facilities. This is a summer program that provides undergraduate and graduate students a unique introduction to hands-on research for future energy systems.
This Internship Opportunity Supports Research Efforts Within The Cybersecurity Research Center (CRC). The CRC Works To Secure The Energy Transformation By Leading Cutting-edge, Impactful Cybersecurity Research That Enables Scalable And Quantifiable Cyber Risk Reduction For Future Energy Systems. Primary Objectives To Realize This Vision Include:
Fully understand cyber risks to help guarantee the benefits of the energy transformation
Make cybersecurity less of an art, more of a science
Advance cyber resilience such that failures of any part of the grid have limited consequence
Proactively address future cyber challenges and transform them into opportunities
ENRGE Interns Contribute To Cyber Research In Advanced Energy Systems Across Many Different Energy Technologies, Including Transmission And Distribution, Solar, Wind, EV/EVSE, Etc. Research Activities Include But Are Not Limited To
- Cyber risk analysis and threat characterization of evolving energy systems
- Advanced modeling and simulation using NREL’s best of breed cyber range
- Cloud security and integration
- Test and evaluation of cybersecurity technologies for modern and distributed energy systems
- Threat emulation and red teaming
- Grid and renewable energy system device analysis, including hardware and software reverse engineering, SBOM, and HBOM
- Supply chain analysis
- Cyber training and exercises
- Advanced wireless technologies for distributed energy
- AI/ML research to enhance cyber resilience of energy systems
- Formal methods research to enhance security verification and assurance for energy systems
- Cyber policy, compliance, and standards
- Data analysis, visualization, and reporting
- Performing literature reviews and background research
- Publishing research results in reputable conferences or journals
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Basic QualificationsMust be enrolled as a full-time student in a Bachelor's, Master's or PhD degree program, or graduated in the past 12 months from an accredited institution. Candidates who have earned a degree may work for a period not to exceed 12 months. Must have a minimum of a 3.0 cumulative grade point average.
Please Note:
•You will need to upload official or unofficial school transcripts as part of the application process.
•If selected for position, a letter of recommendation will be required as part of the hiring process.
* Must meet educational requirements prior to employment start date.
Additional Required Qualifications
Must be enrolled as a full-time student in a Bachelor’s, Master’s or PhD degree program, or graduated in the past 12 months from the following institutions:
- Navajo Technical University
- Alabama A&M University
- Florida International University
- Iḷisaġvik College
Candidates who have earned a degree may work for a period not to exceed 12 months.
Candidate must have a minimum of a 3.0 cumulative grade point average.
Only applicants that are US Citizens or legal permanent residents at the time of application may be considered for this role.
Preferred Qualifications
Preference is given to students with interest and/or experience in energy systems, cybersecurity, engineering principles, concepts, and techniques, or related research area
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Job Application Submission Window
The anticipated closing window for application submission is up to 30 days and may be extended as needed.
Annual Salary Range (based on full-time 40 hours per week)Job Profile: Graduate III / Annual Salary Range: $43,700 - $69,900
NREL takes into consideration a candidate’s education, training, and experience, expected quality and quantity of work, required travel (if any), external market and internal value, including seniority and merit systems, and internal pay alignment when determining the salary level for potential new employees. In compliance with the Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, a potential new employee’s salary history will not be used in compensation decisions.
Benefits SummaryBenefits include medical, dental, and vision insurance; 403(b) Employee Savings Plan with employer match*; and sick leave (where required by law). NREL employees may be eligible for, but are not guaranteed, performance-, merit-, and achievement- based awards that include a monetary component. Some positions may be eligible for relocation expense reimbursement. Internships projected to be less than 20 hours per week are not eligible for medical, dental, or vision benefits.
* Based on eligibility rules
Badging RequirementNREL is subject to Department of Energy (DOE) access restrictions. All employees must also be able to obtain and maintain a federal Personal Identity Verification (PIV) card as required by Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12), which includes a favorable background investigation. Intern assignments extending beyond six months will be subject to this requirement.Drug Free Workplace
NREL is committed to maintaining a drug-free workplace in accordance with the federal Drug-Free Workplace Act and complies with federal laws prohibiting the possession and use of illegal drugs. Under federal law, marijuana remains an illegal drug.
If you are offered employment at NREL, you must pass a pre-employment drug test prior to commencing employment. Unless prohibited by state or local law, the pre-employment drug test will include marijuana. If you test positive on the pre-employment drug test, your offer of employment may be withdrawn.
Submission Guidelines
Please note that in order to be considered an applicant for any position at NREL you must submit an application form for each position for which you believe you are qualified. Applications are not kept on file for future positions. Please include a cover letter and resume with each position application.
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EEO Policy
NREL is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard basis of age (40 and over), color, disability, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, domestic partner status, military or veteran status, national origin/ancestry, race, religion, creed, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding), sexual orientation, and any other applicable status protected by federal, state, or local laws.
EEO is the Law | Pay Transparency Nondiscrimination | Reasonable Accommodations
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What We Do
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), a Department of Energy national lab, is #TransformingEnergy as the nation's primary laboratory for renewable energy and energy efficiency research and development.
NREL's Mission: NREL develops renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies and practices, advances related science and engineering, and transfers knowledge and innovations to address the nation's energy and environmental goals.
NREL's Strategy: NREL has forged a focused strategic direction to increase its impact on the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) and our nation's energy goals by accelerating the research path from scientific innovations to market-viable alternative energy solutions