What Your Job Will Be Like:
We are seeking multiple motivated interns to support advanced concept modeling, simulation, and design across three complementary work areas: RACE hypersonic vehicle design, Ascent guidance/navigation/control and kill-chain modeling, and AFSIM mission/engagement survivability analysis. Interns will help build reusable analysis workflows, model libraries, software hooks, scenario laydowns, data inputs, and automation capabilities that improve the department's ability to rapidly explore advanced aerospace concepts. A major theme across the internship work will be developing sandbox environments that enable AI-assisted hypersonic design, kill-chain analysis, and survivability assessment.
Potential Work Areas:
- RACE Vehicle Concept Design and AI-Enabled Hypersonic Design Sandbox
Interns supporting RACE will help develop reusable vehicle concept design capabilities, including representative input libraries, data structures, model interfaces, and analysis workflows. Work may include outer mold line trade studies, trajectory-informed vehicle analysis, packaging and mass property evaluation, aerodynamic or aerothermal model integration, parameter sweeps, visualization, and automation. This work will support development of a vehicle concept sandbox that enables AI/ML methods to configure, evaluate, compare, and iterate on hypersonic vehicle concepts.
- Ascent GNC, Trajectory, and Kill-Chain Sandbox Development
Interns supporting Ascent will help develop, modify, clean up, and test reusable guidance, navigation, control, trajectory, and mission-analysis capabilities. Work may include implementing closed-loop guidance or navigation algorithms, trajectory evaluation routines, analysis modules, data processing scripts, and visualization tools. Interns may also support development of a reusable kill-chain sandbox including Ascent-based models, representative inputs, software hooks, and workflows to enable AI/ML-assisted hypersonic system design and analysis.
- AFSIM Survivability Analysis and AI-Ready Mission Sandbox
Interns supporting AFSIM will help build and analyze mission and engagement scenarios that assess survivability, attrition, and kill-chain performance for missile, air, space, and unmanned systems. Work may include building representative sensor and weapon laydowns, modeling communications and command-and-control elements, running parameter sweeps, processing simulation outputs, and visualizing survivability drivers such as detection, tracking, engagement, and probability of mission success. Interns may also help develop an AFSIM sandbox environment that can be leveraged for future AI-enabled scenario exploration, algorithm evaluation, and automated trade-space analysis.
On any given day, interns may develop: analysis scripts, build model/input libraries, automate workflows, run simulations, generate plots, document assumptions, clean and improve code, or help connect RACE, Ascent, AFSIM, and other department tools. This work will help accelerate the department's ability to perform repeatable, defensible analyses by reducing setup time, enabling larger trade studies, and creating reusable infrastructure for future AI-enabled advanced concept exploration.
Due to the nature of the work, the selected applicant must be able to work onsite
Salary Range:
At Sandia, we value the important work done by our interns and its contribution to National Security. Because of this, our interns earn competitive pay rates. Our pay structure is based on earned credit hours, classification, and degree level. Your pay rate will be determined during the hire process and included in your offer package. You can view the Intern Pay Rate chart here (https://www.sandia.gov/app/uploads/sites/51/2024/12/Student-Rate-Sheet-2025.docx) .
Qualifications We Require:
You bring the confidence and skills to be eligible for the job by meeting these minimum requirements:
- Earned bachelor's degree
- Currently attending and enrolled full time in the spring term immediately preceding the internship (or scheduled to graduate in the spring) in an accredited science, engineering, or math graduate program
- Minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0/4.0
- Ability to work up to 40 hours per week during the summer
- Ability to secure and maintatin a U.S. security clearance which requires U.S. citizenship
Note: If you have not yet started your graduate program, please apply to an undergraduate intern position.
Qualifications We Desire:
- Graduate student pursuing a degree in aerospace engineering, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, computer science, applied mathematics, physics, or a related technical field.
- Coursework or experience in one or more of the following: aerospace systems, modeling and simulation, vehicle design, flight mechanics, guidance/navigation/control, data analysis, numerical methods, or software development.
- Ability to program or script in Python, MATLAB, C++, or a similar language.
- Strong analytical problem-solving skills.
- Ability to work collaboratively with a multidisciplinary technical team.
- Experience or interest in one or more of the following: hypersonics, missile defense, UAS/cUAS, space systems, kill-chain modeling, survivability analysis, trajectory analysis, aerodynamics, GNC, sensors, radar, EO/IR, fire control, or engagement modeling.
- Experience developing reusable software, analysis scripts, input libraries, simulation workflows, or automated data processing tools.
- Familiarity with Git/version control, Linux, data visualization, numerical methods, Monte Carlo analysis, parameter sweeps, or optimization.
- Interest in AI/ML-enabled modeling and simulation, automated design exploration, reinforcement learning, or multidisciplinary design analysis and optimization.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills.
- Ability to obtain and maintain required access/clearance, if needed.
Posting Duration:
This posting will be open for application submissions for a minimum of three (3) calendar days, including the 'posting date'. Sandia reserves the right to extend the posting date at any time.
About Our Team:
Sandia's Advanced Concepts Engineering department develops early-stage mission, vehicle, and technology concepts for missile, air, and space applications. Our team uses physics- and algorithm-based modeling and simulation to explore new concepts, derive mission-informed requirements, assess survivability and performance, and help sponsors make faster decisions about future capabilities. We work at the front end of programs, connecting mission needs, vehicle design, kill-chain modeling, and technology trade studies to identify concepts that can mature into larger funded efforts.
About Sandia:
Sandia National Laboratories is the nation's premier science and engineering lab for national security and technology innovation, with teams of specialists focused on cutting-edge work in a broad array of areas. Some of the main reasons we love our jobs:
- Challenging work with amazing impact that contributes to security, peace, and freedom worldwide
- Extraordinary co-workers
- Some of the best tools, equipment, and research facilities in the world
- Career advancement and enrichment opportunities
- Flexible work arrangements for many positions include 9/80 (work 80 hours every two weeks, with every other Friday off) and 4/10 (work 4 ten-hour days each week) compressed workweeks, part-time work, and telecommuting (a mix of onsite work and working from home)
- Generous vacation, strong medical and other benefits, competitive 401k, learning opportunities, relocation assistance and amenities aimed at creating a solid work/life balance*
World-changing technologies. Life-changing careers. Learn more about Sandia at: http://www.sandia.gov
*These benefits vary by job classification.
Security Clearance:
Sandia is required by DOE to conduct a pre-employment drug test and background review that includes checks of personal references, credit, law enforcement records, and employment/education verifications. Applicants for employment need to be able to obtain and maintain a DOE Q-level security clearance, which requires U.S. citizenship. If you hold more than one citizenship (i.e., of the U.S. and another country), your ability to obtain a security clearance may be impacted.
Applicants offered employment with Sandia are subject to a federal background investigation to meet the requirements for access to classified information or matter if the duties of the position require a DOE security clearance. Substance abuse or illegal drug use, falsification of information, criminal activity, serious misconduct or other indicators of untrustworthiness can cause a clearance to be denied or terminated by DOE, resulting in the inability to perform the duties assigned and subsequent termination of employment.
EEO:
All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, or veteran status and any other protected class under state or federal law.
NNSA Requirements for MedPEDs:
If you have a Medical Portable Electronic Device (MedPED), such as a pacemaker, defibrillator, drug-releasing pump, hearing aids, or diagnostic equipment and other equipment for measuring, monitoring, and recording body functions such as heartbeat and brain waves, if employed by Sandia National Laboratories you may be required to comply with NNSA security requirements for MedPEDs.
If you have a MedPED and you are selected for an on-site interview at Sandia National Laboratories, there may be additional steps necessary to ensure compliance with NNSA security requirements prior to the interview date.
Job ID: 699523
Job Family: 91
Regular/Temporary Position: T
Full/Part-Time Status: P
