APPLICATION DEADLINE: 
  February 1st, 23:59 EST (Before midnight), 2012  

  
  THE ELECTRONIC APPLICATION FORM WILL LOCK AT 23:59:00 (Midnight) EST ON FEBRUARY 1st, 2012. 
  ALL OFFICIAL TRANSCRIPTS MUST BE POSTMARKED BY 
  NO LATER THAN MIDNIGHT EST ON THAT DATE OR THEY WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.
 

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 2012. The program will likely run 10 weeks from June 10 - August 17, depending on the availability of Harvard housing. Please check these pages for date updates.

Research opportunities may 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 hopes to provide students with the opportunity to present a paper at a scientific meeting, given the availability of funding.

The stipend will be $4500.00 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 15 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 NSF guidelines, we may accept applications from foreign students if they are able to pay all of their expenses with a comparable stipend from a fellowship provided from elsewhere (home institution or home country). We need proof of such outside support. 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.

A completed application consists of the on-line application form (including a 600 - 800 word essay), at least 2 letters of recommendation from professors, supervisors or others who know you well (submitted electronically as described elsewhere --NOT mailed or e-mailed to us--), and official transcipts from all colleges or universities you have attended.

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".

Link to our On-line Application Form

CONTACTING US: We encourage you to contact us, after reviewing the Frequently Asked Questions , if you have any additional 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.

Write to us at the address below...
Contact us via e-mail using intern_at_cfa.harvard.edu
Or phone us... Kathy Campbell: (617) 496-7622

Remember to:

 

SEND TRANSCRIPTS TO:

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