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High School Internship Program
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This program allows a small number of local high school students to experience working in a Janelia research lab.
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The Janelia-Loudoun County Resident Summer Internship Program will offer high school students that attend the Loudoun County Public Schools or are residents of Loudoun County, and who are 16 years or older at the time of the internship, the opportunity to spend 8 weeks at HHMI’s Janelia Research Campus, performing research using state-of-the-art technology and methods to answer questions in biology and computational science under the guidance of group leaders, scientists, and engineers. Selected students will have the opportunity to attend seminars by Janelia researchers, as well as to participate in journal clubs and other events.
Applications for the Summer Internship Program are due February 5 at 5pm.
Please note that this is a full-time 8-week paid internship program (June 16-August 8, 2025) to which you will be dedicating 40 hours per week. Therefore, it is expected that you will not undertake other organized activities that conflict with the program and will plan vacations and activities around the internship dates. Students selected will be responsible for their own housing, food, and travel to and from Janelia.
We are looking for students with strong biology and/or computational background who have demonstrated a high level of academic standards and have experience in scientific research. Projects cover a wide variety of topics including machine learning algorithms, data annotation, reconstruction of neural networks, animal behavior analysis and optogenetics. High school students interested in computer programming, engineering, mathematics, physics, and neuroscience are encouraged to apply. Experience in programming in Python, Matlab, and/or C++ is strongly encouraged.
This program provides an outstanding research experience, an opportunity to network with colleagues at all career levels, and a chance to form lifelong friendships.
There are two parallel application processes for the Janelia Summer Internship Program.
- If you attend a Loudoun County Public School, the application process is implemented by the Loudoun County Public School System and applications are received by the schools. Contact the LCPS Science Office in the Department of Teaching and Learning.
- If you are a high school age resident of Loudoun County, but do not attend a Loudoun County Public High School (for example, you are a Loudoun County resident that attends Thomas Jefferson High School or are home schooled), please follow the application process set forth below.
Requirements for non-LCPS Applications:
- Resume
- Motivation for Conducting Research at Janelia. A 300-500 word statement of your reasons for applying to the program -- tell us about your interest in scientific research and what motivates you in in regards to working at Janelia. Please list up to 3 goals you have for doing research at Janelia this summer and why. These goals could include developing or applying coding skills in the lab (e.g., data annotation, machine learning, developing user interfaces or software, etc.), conducting wet bench research (only if you will be 18 by June 16th), general STEM skills (e.g., how to give a scientific presentation, how to read a primary literature paper, etc.), and/or other topics (e.g., meet scientists in different research fields, etc.).
- Description of Activities in Science and Mathematics. In 500 words or less, please describe any activities in or beyond the classroom that demonstrate aptitude and enthusiasm for science and mathematics. This can include, but is not limited to:
- Completion of scientific or engineering projects.
- Completion of science and/or math university-level coursework.
- Experience conducting original scientific research.
- Experience coding in Python, MATLAB, Java, C, C++ or other languages (Note that because most intern projects are computational, please indicate your level of experience with each language that you have used, e.g., beginner, comfortable or advanced user)
- Projects using machine learning
- Participation in math and science competitions
- Publications, scientific presentations, participation in science outreach or other organized science activities
- High School Transcript
- One Letter of Recommendation from a math or science teacher. Only one letter of recommendation will be accepted. The letter should be from a teacher who has taught you in an academic class in high school and who can talk about how you interact with your peers and classmates, how well prepared you are for your classes, your level of engagement in the classroom, as well as your dedication to school activities. The letter of recommendation must be submitted directly by the teacher to snappe@janelia.hhmi.org with the subject line “Letter of Recommendation for Applicant Last Name, Applicant First Name”. Letters should be confidential and not viewed by the student.
- No additional materials will be accepted or considered.
The application materials (Resume, Statement of Purpose, and Description of Activities) must be emailed as one PDF document to Dr. Erik Lee Snapp at snappe@janelia.hhmi.org. The file should be named with the student’s last name. Please include “Janelia-LCR Summer Internship Program” in the subject line of the email. IMPORTANT: If you are enrolled in a Loudoun County Public High School, then you must apply through the high school administered application process. Do not send applications directly to Janelia. Any such applications will not be considered.
