Summer Internships

Internship Benefits

Interns are encouraged to attend lectures offered under the NIH Summer Seminar Series, participate in DCEG meetings and seminars, attend formal NIH lectures and symposia, and participate in the DCEG and NIH Summer Research Program Poster Days.

DCEG Summer Internship is a paid internship; summer interns receive a monthly stipend based on academic level.

DCEG Summer Interns

Gain Experience in Epidemiology, Biostatistics, or Laboratory Research

DCEG researchers work on a variety of population studies and develop novel analytic techniques. Our investigators serve as invaluable mentors to interns on a wide range of research topics. Read more on our Principal Investigators page.

DCEG offers a limited number of summer laboratory research opportunities. Candidates can explore additional laboratory research opportunities at the NIH Research and Training website.

Explore DCEG Research Areas

Interns are offered the flexibility to study topics that cross research areas, requiring diverse sets of skills. The DCEG portfolio includes the below research areas, along with a range of cross-cutting scientific studies, including health disparities, gender differences, and others:

• Biostatistics: Descriptive studies to characterize cancer trends, analysis of large-scale data sets, statistical models for predicting cancer risk
• Clinical Genetics: Cancer predisposition syndromes, genetic modifiers of cancer risk, telomere biology disorders
• Integrative Tumor Epidemiology: Advance understanding of cancer etiology and progression, perform integrative analyses of environmental and germline risk factors with comprehensive data on histological and molecular profiling of tumors and their precursors
• Infections and Immunoepidemiology: Prospective cohorts at high risk of AIDS, oncogenic viruses, immunosuppression, and cancer
• Metabolic Epidemiology: Hormones, tobacco, and other exposures, energy balance /obesity, dietary intake, and micronutrients
• Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology: Pesticides and agricultural exposures, industrial chemicals, environmental exposures, exposure assessment
• Radiation Epidemiology: Medical radiation exposures, occupational radiation exposures, environmental radiation exposures, radiation dosimetry
• Translational Genomics: Relationship of germline genetic variation to cancer, detection, and mapping of cancer susceptibility alleles, bioinformatic analyses of genetic variants

What You Need to Know Before Applying

A typical summer internship lasts 8 to 10 weeks with a minimum requirement of 8 weeks. The internship begins in late May or early June and ends in August or September, but exact dates depend on the student's and the mentor's schedules.

COVID-19 UPDATE: Our priority is the safety of our staff, trainees, and communities. Updates and additional information regarding the NIH Summer Internship Program 2023 can be found on the NIH SIP website, and questions about internships in DCEG may be directed to our Summer Internship Coordinator, Ms. Diane Wigfield.

Eligibility

To apply for the NIH SIP, and SIP cohort programs, you must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.^* In addition, you must be:

• 18 years of age or older on June 1, 2025, AND

• currently enrolled at least half-time as a senior in high school, OR

• enrolled at least half-time in an accredited community college, college, or university as an undergraduate, graduate, or professional school student (e.g., medical, dental, pharmacy, etc.) at the time of application, OR

• accepted into an accredited graduate program for the fall semester with the expectation of attending at least half-time. High school graduates who completed a gap year and are starting community college or college in the fall, are also eligible to apply.

*U.S. permanent residents must be attending or have been accepted into educational institutions in the U.S.

Applicants with a family member working at NIH should be aware of the strict nepotism policy, which may limit your ability to work in certain NIH institutes, centers, or research groups.

2023 Summer Intern Program

In the summer of 2023, 30 interns from 12 states and the District of Columbia, came to do research in every branch of DCEG as well as in the Trans-Divisional Research Program.

Selection Process

After submitting your application, you should identify and contact investigators and/or postdoctoral fellows whose work interests you. Find a list of DCEG investigators and their research interests. Once you have identified someone of interest and learned enough about what they are working on, you can send a direct email to them describing why you want to work with them and how you would be a good addition to their group. For more advice watch the NIH SIP video on applying to the summer program.

Attend an Upcoming Information Session

NIH Summer Internship Program (SIP) Application Webinars

Speaker: Natasha Lugo-Escobar, OITE

Dates:
Nov 21, 2024 | 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM EST | Virtual

Dec 12, 2024 | 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM EST | Virtual

NIH Postbac and Summer Internship Q&A

Speaker: Natasha Lugo-Escobar, OITE

Jan 9, 2025 | 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM EST \ Virtual

How to Apply

Thank you for your interest in our NIH summer program. The application process for summer 2024 is now closed. Applications for the NIH summer internship program are typically accepted starting in mid-November each year.

NCI values diversity and particularly encourages applications from individuals from diverse backgrounds, including those from groups underrepresented in the cancer research workforce, for example those from the groups listed in the Notice of NIH’s Interest in Diversity (NOT-OD-20-031). We want your unique voice to contribute to the depth and breadth of scientific research in DCEG.