FAQs

You may visit the Office of Naval Research's website at https://www.nre.navy.mil/

Saxman One provides support for NREIP on behalf of the Office of Naval Research and can be reached at NREIP@saxmanone.com or (703) 530-9523 ext. 7.

The vast majority of participating labs require you to be a U.S. citizen to intern at their facility. However, there are a few labs who will consider permanent residents. Please visit the Labs page to determine a specific lab's eligibility requirements.

Most labs only accept applicants who are solely U.S. citizens. Those who are dual citizens or permanent residents should consult the Labs page for eligibility requirements for each lab.

Applicants must be on track to acquire a minimum of 31 credits by the end of their Spring semester before their internship start date.

Students attending two-year colleges, who meet the major and credit requirements (majors should be relevant to the lab’s research interests; 31-credit minimum) may be eligible at the laboratory's discretion. Lab requirements vary, so please contact the laboratory you are interested in directly to find out if you qualify.

The graduate NREIP stipend level is reserved for students, who by the time they start their summer internship, have A) earned their bachelor’s degree or equivalent (usually by the time they apply) AND B) at least one semester of full-time graduate enrollment and course load at the graduate level (after obtaining their BS degree).

An udergraduate who graduates in the spring semester before the summer internship program is considered at the undergraduate NREIP stipend level.

To be eligible for the $11,500 stipend level, you must currently be enrolled as a full-time graduate student and have already completed your undergraduate courses to receive this level.

No, you must be a high school graduate (or equivalent) to participate in NREIP. High school students can apply to the SEAP program.

Students graduating the Spring semester before the summer internship are eligible to apply. Students expected to graduate college during the Winter semester and not enrolling in graduate school before the summer internship, are not eligible.

Housing allowances are not provided. Acquiring housing for the duration of the program is the responsibility of the student. Navy host personnel and lab coordinators may be able to assist you in finding suitable housing.

Stipends are set to $7,500 for new undergraduate participants, $9,000 for returning undergraduate students, and $11,500 for graduate students. The stipends are split into payments made to the student throughout the duration of their appointment. Stipends will be paid bi-weekly via direct deposit from the first day you start working at the lab.

When the application period is open, APPLY will appear in the navigation above.

The summer internship application period begins each year on August 1st. If you would like updates about the program and notification of when the application period opens, please sign up for our mailing list.

The application period closes at 11:59 PM ET on November 1st of every year.

After your application is received, it is submitted to the Navy laboratories that you selected on your application. The lab research staff reviews the application and makes a decision based on your academic background, research interests, personal statement, and recommendations.

Awards and Non-awards are typically sent out to students from December to March (following the close of the application).

All applications are automatically distributed to all participating labs regardless of region. However, when applying you may select up to three top lab choices.

You will only have the option to participate at labs that have extended an offer to you. You will not be reassigned to a new location once an award has been extended.

Your transcripts are extremely important as they are required in order to submit your application. A current copy of your transcript (official or unofficial) must be uploaded when submitting your application.

Please ensure your name, address, email and phone number are accurate and up to date. This will be used to notify you of your award status and for accessing your application and processing tax documents.

While completing your application you will be asked for your references’ names and email addresses. Once the reference section of your application is complete, your references will receive an email explaining the procedure for submitting recommendations to Saxman One. References need to be uploaded by the reference provider by November 10th at 10pm EST.

We recommend sending out recommendation requests as soon as possible to afford your references time to compose and submit a quality reference letter for you.

NOTE: These emails are automatically generated and may be blocked or labeled as spam. It is important that applicants follow up with their references to ensure that this email is received. Only Letters of Recommendation uploaded by the references will be accepted.

It is recommended that you choose, for each reference, a teacher or any person who can attest to your scientific and engineering skills and knowledge.

You will receive an automatic email once your references are submitted. You can also sign into the applicant portal and see the status for each submission.

You can submit your application as soon as all of the required fields have been filled in. If your reference sends the letter after you have submitted, the letter will be added to your application.

You will find a description of each lab’s research areas, objectives and background by visiting the Labs page for lab details.

Please email the NREIP help desk Saxman One to inquire if it is possible to update your application.

Yes. Once the labs select their summer interns, ONLY selected students will undergo background checks for security purposes. All internships are contingent upon lab security approval.

There are multiple labs which require their students to receive SECRET security clearances. ONLY selected students, who have signed the Terms & Conditions, will begin the security clearance process. The process usually takes many months to receive an interim clearance. Students will be informed at every step. This is why students' contact information should be kept up-to-date. It is very important that all security forms be completed in an extremely timely manner due to the continuing backlog at OPM.

NOTE: All internships are contingent upon lab's security approval. Most labs will not let you start unless you have at least an interim clearance.

There are several reasons why a student may not receive an interim security clearance. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and the Defense Security Service (DSS) review all security clearance applications thoroughly. Students should take the clearance process very seriously. All students applying should review the following Interim Clearances for Industrial Personnel (PDF) (4pp, 31 KB, About PDF). Students should review the document for possible reasons why an interim clearance may be denied.

Saxman One will not withhold taxes from your stipend. Saxman One will provide you and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) with the informational Form 1099-MISC recording the amount paid to you during the tax year. Under current laws and regulations, independent contractors are responsible for submitting quarterly estimates of income taxes to the IRS and paying the amounts due. You may have a similar liability with respect to state and/or local taxes depending upon the state and/or locality where you reside.

You are considered guest researchers and are not considered employed by either the United States Government, the Department of Defense, the US Navy, the Office of Naval Research, any ONR lab or Saxman One. If you have further tax questions, please contact the IRS, as Saxman One is prohibited from giving tax advice.