2027 SIParCS Graduate Student Internships

About the Role

The Summer Internships in Parallel Computational Science (SIParCS) program at NSF National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) offers graduate students and undergraduates who have completed their sophomore year hands-on R&D opportunities in high-performance computing (HPC) and related fields. The 2027 summer internships are 11 weeks in duration. Applicants must be available to work 40 hours per week from May 17, 2027, through July 30, 2027. The program includes attending technical seminars, skills-enhancing workshops, preparing a poster, and giving an oral presentation of results. For Summer 2027, the internship is planned to be in-person at the Boulder, Colorado campuses.

Key Responsibilities

• Conduct original research under the guidance of a science mentor.
• Give a presentation based on research.
• Participate professionally in all SIParCS activities.

Project Descriptions

• Project 06. A Study of Quantum Applications within Earth System Modeling (ESM)
• Project 07. Can Data Assimilation of Spatially and Temporally Dense Surface Pressure Observations Reveal the State of the Entire Troposphere?
• Project 08. Decentralized Federated Learning Sensornets for Community Resilience and Actionable Science
• Project 09. EcoMAP: Ecological Mapping and AI-Assisted Species Profiling
• Project 10. Emulators and GPUs for Data Assimilation
• Project 11. Ensemble vs. Regional Refinement: Satellite Data Assimilation for Urban Air Quality Forecasting
• Project 12. Exploring Agentic Software Engineering and Spec-Driven Development for Scientific Software
• Project 13. Exploring AI-Assisted Interfaces for Search and Discovery using Scientific Embeddings
• Project 14. Large GPU Ensembles and Rare-Event Sampling for Weather and Climate
• Project 15. MPAS-A and Evaluating AI-assisted Coding Methods
• Project 16. Using agentic AI to accelerate the modernization of a large scientific codebase

Requirements & Tech Stack

• Must have attained a bachelor's degree at the time of application.
• Must currently be enrolled in a U.S. university.
• Must be a graduate or doctoral student.
• Must be authorized to work in the U.S. to be eligible for the SIParCS program.
• On-site participation in Boulder, Colorado.
• Ability to work 40 hours/week from May 10 - July 30, 2027 (dates to be confirmed).
• Ability to work with a broad group of peers.
• Skill in the use of software for communication purposes (e.g., Word, Excel, PowerPoint, email).
• Ability and willingness to learn and use scientific computing tools and programs.
• Good oral and written communication skills.
• Basic problem-solving skills.
• Ability to analyze data and draw conclusions.
• Basic knowledge, through coursework, of mathematics, computer science, or engineering.
• Ability to interact with mentors and peers in a manner that supports collaboration and inquiry.
• Ability and willingness to work within guidelines and policies of the organization and assigned work groups.

Qualifications

• Personal Statement: No longer than two (2) pages, addressing specific questions related to community building, leadership, career goals, and mentorship.
• CV or Resume.
• Copy of most recent undergraduate AND graduate university transcript (unofficial transcripts are ok).

Application Instructions

• Application Closes: 11:59 pm Mountain Time on January 19, 2027.
• All required application materials must be submitted in one (1) PDF document, in the specified order.
• Applicants may apply to no more than two (2) SIParCS projects.
• Background checks are conducted for candidate(s) selected for hire.

Additional Information

• For F visa students, CPT work authorization issued through a U.S. Designated School Official (DSO) or OPT issued through both a DSO and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will be required.
• UCAR can sponsor H-1B status only for candidates already in the U.S. who hold H-1B status or another status that allows a change to H-1B within the country.
• AI tools are permitted, but candidates are strongly encouraged to submit primarily original work.
• If you have questions or limitations with the online application system, contact [email protected].
• For questions regarding the SIParCS program, contact [email protected].