ASPIRE Fellowship - Summer 2025

We Are:

Fermilab is America's premier laboratory for particle physics and accelerator research, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy. We support discovery science experiments in Illinois and at locations around the world, including deep underground mines in South Dakota and Canada, mountaintops in Arizona and Chile, and the South Pole.

We are strategic risk takers, innovators, and collaborators. We are engineers, scientists, technicians, administrative professionals. We are over 2,000 employees advancing knowledge for the benefit of humankind. Fermilab has been at the forefront of particle physics for more than 40 years. We build world-leading accelerators and detectors to conduct some of the most advanced particle physics experiments possible. We collect and analyze the data from those experiments with some of the most powerful computers in the world. We conduct this research on a 6,800-acre prairie, 35 miles outside Chicago, a treasure that has been designated a National Environmental Research Park.

The ASPIRE Fellows participate in the design, development and construction of world-leading particle accelerators, initially the PIP-II project, presently under construction at Fermilab.

Immersed in a leading-edge research and development environment through interactions with experienced, deeply knowledgeable, and often internationally renowned engineers and scientists, ASPIRE Fellows experience a lifetime opportunity to contribute to the construction of one of the most powerful particle accelerators in the world.
Under the guidance of an assigned mentor, ASPIRE Fellows realize professional growth through the acquisition of in-demand engineering skills and the establishment of professional networks within the U.S. accelerator science and technology community.

The ASPIRE Fellowship duration is fifteen to eighteen months, encompassing interleaved summers and academic year semesters. Fellows are expected to be resident at Fermilab during the summers, and possibly during portions of the academic year. Fellows are paid by Fermilab during the periods of residence.
Upon successful completion of the program, Fellows will have acquired accelerator engineering skills that will provide a platform for their future careers and/or post-graduate work in the case of undergraduate participants.
A primary goal of the ASPIRE program is to develop participants into competitive candidates for full-time employment in particle accelerator and related fields, including at Fermilab, upon Fellowship completion.

Eligibility

• Undergraduate junior and senior or post-graduate (masters) engineering students who are historically and contemporarily under-represented in accelerator engineering fields, including Black, LatinX, Indigenous identities, and women
• U.S. citizen or permanent resident at time of application
• Full-time enrollment in a 4-year program of study (for undergraduates) at all US colleges or universities for the duration of appointment
• Minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale

Application Requirements

Before you apply, please have all your requirements ready. Once you submit the application you will no longer have access and will not be able to upload any missing requirements.

Complete online application and upload the following requirements:

• Official academic transcript
• One letter of recommendation (provide your reference contact info on the application and we will send a link to upload the letter of recommendation)
• Personal statement (save as pdf and upload under the Resume section)
• Provide schedule of proposed residency periods at Fermilab (months that you're available to work at Fermilab (save as a PDF and upload under the Resume section.)

Fellowship Detail

• The initial application period will extend from December 9, 2024 - January 17, 2025
• The initial residency period will be May 19, 2025 - August 29, 2025. Flexible Dates
• Offer Date: February 17, 2025
• Acceptance date: February 21, 2025
• Salary:
• Junior Undergraduate: $23.00 per hour
• Senior Undergraduate: $25.00 per hour
• Master (year 1): $1000 per week
• Master (year 2): $1050 per week
• Housing: Arranged housing partially subsidized by fellowship.
• Transportation: Paid round-trip airfare or mileage reimbursement if permanent address is more than 50 miles from Fermilab.

Deliverables

• Presentation abstract
• Oral presentation (Seminar)
• Written research project report

If you have any questions, please contact internships@fnal.gov.

Fermilab is an Equal Opportunity Employer and believes a diverse and inclusive environment based on mutual respect is essential to our mission. Fermilab is committed to recruiting and developing the most hardworking people and does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, ethnicity, color, religion, age, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, military/veteran status, country of birth, geography/postal code, disability, marital status, parental or gestational status, or other non-merit factor.

REAL-ID Requirement for access to Fermilab Campus
Fermilab and FRA requires all members of the public to produce a REAL-ID, or equivalent, to access the Fermilab Campus for interviews or career events. A list of acceptable forms of ID can be found here: https://get-connected.fnal.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/REALID-Documents.pdf If a candidate is selected for an interview but does not possess any of the equivalent documents, we may schedule a virtual interview.