2025 DOE Scholars - Internships - Research at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant

The DOE Scholars Program offers unique opportunities that introduce students to the mission and operations of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), Carlsbad Field Office (CBFO) Program. The WIPP Site is the Nation's repository for defense related Transuranic Waste. It is deep geological salt mine 2150 ft. underground in the Salado formation underneath southeastern New Mexico and West Texas. The facility receives shipments of prepackaged waste from multiple generator sites across the U.S. and emplaces that waste into rooms which have been mined out of the salt formation at depth. The CBFO has a number of areas where research opportunities exist for participants. Areas include the following:

• Maintenance of the mine requires support of the exposed mine surfaces, known in the mining industry as ground control. Participants would be conducting research into the methods and efficacy of current and proposed ground control methods.
• The WIPP mine is ventilated by a suite of forced air exhaust fans. Participants would be involved in mine ventilation airflow studies being conducted by DOE operating contractor and DOE to validate current airflow assumptions and potentially explore solutions for improved ventilation in the WIPP underground.
• The waste which is received at WIPP undergoes rigorous investigations to ensure the suitability of the waste to be safely handled, packaged, and disposed of in the WIPP repository by waste disposal workers.  The program to ensure these conditions are met prior to packaging the waste is known as the National TRU Program (NTP). It is run out of the Carlsbad Field Office. The NTP monitors the programs and processes which characterize the waste for hazardous constituents, and which ensure it will meet all of the WIPP Waste Acceptance Criteria. Participants would be conducting research into how waste streams are analyzed and approved for shipment to WIPP. The research would look into programs run at the generator sites but would all be conducted at the Carlsbad Field Office.
• Finally, participants would team with federal staff in either the Office of Business, Environmental Protection, or the Office of Program Management where they will research the day-to-day conduct of business within a DOE Field Office. The appointees will be assigned a mentor and will conduct research and study tasks to gain understanding of the interactions and responsibilities of the assigned office and its relation to accomplishment of the mission at WIPP.

Participation in all of these activities would be coordinated through the Carlsbad Field Office's Office of the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (OWIPP) with the participants reporting the results of their participation to their assigned mentors.

Participant Benefits

Selected candidates will receive a stipend as support for their living and other expenses during this appointment. Stipend start at $700/week and are determined by DOE officials and are based on the candidate’s academic and professional background. Inbound/Outbound expenses, not to exceed $1,000, incurred in relocating more than 50 miles from the address shown on the application may be reimbursed.

Length of Appointment

Appointments duration typically ranges from 8-12 weeks, but other appointments periods may be possible.

Nature of Appointment

The participant will not enter into an employee/employer relationship with ORISE, ORAU, DOE, or any other office or agency.  Instead, the participant will be affiliated with ORISE for the administration of the appointment through the ORISE letter of appointment and Terms of Appointment.

A complete application consists of:

• Profile Information
• Essay Questions (goals, experiences, and skills relevant to the DOE Scholars Program)
• Resume (PDF)
• Transcripts/Academic Records - Unofficial transcripts or copies of the student academic records printed by the applicant or by academic advisors from internal institutional systems may be submitted. Transcripts/Academic Records must include name of the academic institution, name of the student, completed/in progress coursework and grades. Documents must have all social security numbers, student identification numbers, and/or dates of birth removed (blanked out, blackened out, made illegible, etc.) prior to uploading into the application system.
• Recommendation - You are encouraged to request a recommendation from a professional who can speak to your abilities and potential for success as well as your scientific capabilities and personal characteristics. Recommenders will be asked to complete a recommendation in Zintellect. The recommendation is due 04/23/2025 08:00:00 AM EST.

All documents must be submitted via Zintellect. All application components must be received in the system in order to be considered.

Additional Information

For more information on the DOE Scholars Program, visit https://orise.orau.gov/doescholars or contact us at doescholars@orise.orau.gov.

The DOE Scholars Program offers multiple opportunities during the year to accommodate the needs and schedule of individual sponsoring offices. Opportunities may have different eligibility requirements, benefits and deadlines. To be considered you must apply to each opportunity individually.

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Salary : $700