NASA offers opportunities for students of all ages to get exposure as to what working at NASA is like. There are many programs available, but this page outlines just a few of the ways to get involved.
NIFS OSSI is an effective way that students can get apply to get involved with the Langley Research center, and potentially work for the Remote Sensing Branch. It is a website where students can view opportunities at research centers and apply to them. Students can apply to as many openings as they want with the application they craft once per session (Spring, Summer, Fall).
OSSI is a NASA-wide system for the recruitment, application, selection and career development of undergraduate and graduate students primarily in science, technology, engineering and mathematics disciplines. Opportunities for students in other disciplines are available.
There are more directions on the OSSI Website for prospective interns, but to apply to work at the Langley Research center, specify your search to only select internships with the correct location. To work for the Remote Sensing Branch make sure that the mentor for the internship is a member of the branch or has an internship description describing what we do as a branch.
Student Volunteer Internship Program is a program that allows students, who are attending school at least half-time, to volunteer their services to NASA. It provides students in high school through graduate school an opportunity for hands-on unpaid work experience with scientists, engineers and project managers on a variety of NASA projects, while meeting educational goals.
The internship is unpaid but it offers the students a fantastic opportunity. For the Langley Research center, yolanda.watford.simmons@nasa.gov is the program coordinator. Prospective volunteers may contact her for the proper materials to apply to the program. Students must first secure a mentor at the Langley Research center, one of the engineers that agrees to take the student on for an agreed time and guide them through a project. Once students have secured a mentor, and worked out an agreement for the time span and hours of the internship, they may contact Mrs. Simmons for the necessary forms. The contact information for the members of the Remote Sensing Branch are in the Profiles section of this website.
NASA Pathways is a program geared towards much older students, it is designed for students close to graduating from college and entering the work force, or for recent college graduates already searching for a job. Pathways provides paid opportunities to work in agencies and explore Federal careers while still in school or recently graduated. This program exposes students to jobs in the Federal civil service by providing meaningful development work at the beginning of their career, before their career paths are fully established.
More information is available on the Pathways Homepage, but essentially accepted applicants to the program work a Federal job at NASA for a required number of hours and once they complete the hour requirement, along with whatever other requirements, they may be asked to stay on doing the same job for full time and pay. It is a good way to secure a well paying full time job at NASA.
More general opportunities are posted on NASA’s main website, in the For Students section as well.