Submitting a Competitive Internship Application

LPI’s Submitting a Competitive Internship Application webinar provides tips on planning, information on how to research an internship program, and instruction on incorporating experiences and skills into your application. Presenters included Claudia Bellard (Senior Administrative Assistant, LPI), Dr. M. Alexandra Matiella Novak (Senior Professional Staff, JHU Applied Physics Laboratory), Dr. Edgard Rivera-Valentín (Staff Scientist and LPI Internship Coordinator, LPI), and Christine Shupla (Science Engagement Manager, LPI).

View Webinar Video  

Recommendations

• Read the application and follow all of the instructions.
• Do research on the internship and the possible advisors; and match your expertise and skills to the opportunities.
• Tailor your application to the internship opportunity.
• Be yourself, be original.
• Sell yourself as if it were a job application: your expertise, your skills, your interests.
• Explain any issues (such as a low GPA) in your cover letter and letters of support, and how you are overcoming these challenges.
• Give your references plenty of time to write their letters of support.
• Provide details about yourself to those writing your reference letters.
• Proofread your application; and ask an advisor to review and give feedback before you submit it.

Presentations

• Submitting a Competitive Internship Application
• Common Mistakes Students Make When Applying for Internships
• NASA Internships / AFRL Scholars Program
• How to Stand Out

Additional recommendations are at How To Stand Out When Competing For A Summer Internship

LPI Undergraduate Internships

• LPI Summer Intern Program in Planetary Science
• Summer Undergraduate Program for Planetary Research (SUPPR)

Other Internships

• The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) Internships
• NASA Internships
• Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Scholars
• NASA's Planetary Geology and Geophysics Undergraduate Research Program
• NSF Research Experiences for Undergraduates
• Los Alamos National Lab Undergraduate Student Internship Program
• Sandia National Laboratories Internships
• Department of Energy Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internships
• NASA's Student Airborne Research Program (SARP)