The SAO Summer Intern Program

 
  APPLICATION DEADLINE: February 1^st, 2008
   
(The application date changed 11/29/2007.)

Applications are invited from undergraduates to participate in the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory Summer Intern Program at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, MA.

We anticipate offering ten astronomical research positions during the summer of 2008. The program will likely run from Sunday, June 8^th through Saturday, August 15^th (Please check these pages for any date changes).

Research opportunities exist in all areas of astrophysics, including observational and theoretical cosmology, extra-galactic and galactic astronomy, interstellar medium and star formation, laboratory astrophysics, supernovae and supernova remnants, and planetary science.

The program will provide students with the opportunity to present a paper at a scientific meeting.

The 2008 Summer Intern Program will run for nine to ten weeks, depending on availability of Harvard Housing.
The stipend will be $3500.00 for the summer. Housing and travel will be subsidized.

Summer Interns are required to write a research-style paper (approximately 10 pages long) over the course of the summer and to present the results of their work in the form of a 10 minute oral presentation at an "Intern Symposium" at the end of the summer.

ELIGIBILITY:

In order to receive any funding, internship applicants must be U. S. citizens or hold a valid green card. No other form of visa or permit can be accepted. Under NSA guidelines, we may accept applications from foreign students if they are able to pay all of their expenses and to forgo the stipend. Foreign students must, of course, have valid documents allowing them to be in the U. S. legally. Applications from foreign students who meet these criteria will be considered equally with all other applications.
Students who are U. S. citizens but who are attending colleges or universities not in the United States are eligible.
Applicants must be currently enrolled in a program leading to a bachelor's degree (those already holding a bachelor's degree are not eligible).
Graduating college seniors and students on a leave of absence are not eligible.

Please see the Frequently Asked Questions list for more information.

TO APPLY: You must be registered to access the on-line application. Go to the Fellowship Application Login page. Select "Update Account" then "Register". On the Registration page, enter your full email address and a password of your choice. Repeat the password for verification and select "Register Now". On-line Application Form

***
PLEASE
NOTE
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Each year some students ask for special consideration or an extension of the deadline for various reasons. Rarely do we make an exception to the requirements. It has to be literally impossible for a student to meet them for reasons having to do with their school's policies, or something else beyond the student's control. We consider the deadline for mailing the applications to be firm, regardless of whether the student or another person posted (or was supposed to have posted) the material. This policy was determined to be fair to those who do get all the elements of their applications in the mail by the deadline.
If you think there is a chance that those who you have asked to write letters of recommendation for you might not mail them in time, or that your school might not mail your transcript promptly, you may have to visit the person(s) or office in question to make sure the material gets out on time. If you wish, you may have three letters of recommendation sent to us, to be sure that we get at least two. You may rank the letters to let us know which writer(s) you think would know you best.

CONTACTING US: We encourage you to contact us if you have any questions about the application process! If you have difficulty with the on-line application form, please write to us with a complete description of the problem. We want to make the application process as smooth as possible.

Remember - send no application materials (other than your on-line application) by FAX or e-mail.

Please inform those who write letters for you that the letters must be sent via snail, postmarked on or before by February 1st.

Send application materials to: Program Director SAO Summer Intern Program, MS-70 Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics 60 Garden Street Cambridge MA 02138

We will post any changes in schedule or policy on our home page, so check back from time to time.

If we are unable to offer you a position this summer, but you would still like to be considered for other summer employment opportunities at the Center for Astrophysics, please indicate this clearly on the front page of your summer intern program application. We will pass your request to our Human Resources Department, which is in charge of summer job applications.

We regret that we are unable to provide housing for positions advertised by the Human Resources Department.

The SAO Summer Internship program is also unable to fulfill pre-arranged partnerships between applicants and scientists.