Browse opportunities on the NSF ETAP page or enter “NHRE” in the search bar.
May 27 - August 1, 2025
Participating students will receive a stipend of $8,000.
NHRE interns bring a wide range of experiences and narratives to the program and there is no such thing as an average intern. NHRE interns hail from across the US and beyond. In a typical year about half of our interns will come from colleges that cater primarily to undergraduates and approximately 50 percent will identify with groups traditionally underrepresented in the sciences. Most interns will be rising sophomores, juniors, or seniors. The personal narrative of each applicant is considered.
We require that students be able to arrive no later than the Monday following the first week (and then only if they absolutely cannot reschedule final exams) and that they be present through the final day of the program. A brief excused absence of a few days may be permitted in consultation with the program directors and your mentor.
Unfortunately, the NHRE program cannot accept applications from non-US citizens and graduating seniors. There are several other pathways to getting an internship at the National Museum of Natural History, so be sure to regularly monitor the Smithsonian Internship website for additional opportunities.
High school graduates who have been accepted at an undergraduate institution but who have not yet started their undergraduate study are eligible to apply.
The personal narrative of each applicant is considered. We are looking for students who (1) show a lot of promise / potential to become scientific leaders (2) will benefit professionally from participating in NHRE (i.e. NHRE will have a high impact on their potential to reach their career goals). Finally, every year we strive to assemble a team that brings a diversity of personal narratives to the Smithsonian as we train the next generation.
The most effective letters will come from people best able to judge your ability to succeed in an undergraduate research program. Generally this will mean college professors, ideally those who know you well enough to write a positive and specific recommendation. High school teachers can also be appropriate, especially for first year college students. Sometimes, another person in a position of responsibility (e.g., employer, academic advisor) may be able to attest to your qualities, although the letter should be able to speak about academic potential.
An independent panel of museum staff reviews and ranks the applications first by discipline and then, for a group of 50 finalists, across disciplines. Every application in our finalist pool is read and ranked by at least three staff members. Interns selected for our program are then matched with willing mentors, ideally in a discipline of the applicant's choosing.
The level to which the intern designs the research project is highly variable from highly intern-led to highly mentor-led, with the typical project largely designed by the mentor.
Contact us. There is a good chance we can give you additional information about your status that may help in making your decision.
Applicants in our Finalist Pool will be notified in early March. We will make offers throughout the month of March and all applicants will be notified of their status by April 1st. Please be aware that other REU should not require you to accept or decline offers prior to March 15th. If you need to make a decision about another summer opportunity before you hear from us, please notify NHRE@si.edu immediately so that we may respond.
Questions after You Are Accepted
No. You can walk to the museum from the dorms or take public transportation.
Interns live together in dormitory suites at The George Washington University. All housing comes with access to kitchen facilities. Students will be in single-occupancy rooms for 2025.
Yes — NHRE alumni report that living together builds a sense of community and we find that students rank their living arrangements very highly at the end of the program. Housing in the dorms is provided by the program.
You will soon receive an extensive welcome packet that gives you guidelines regarding what to bring, what to do when you arrive, and how to get in touch with program alumni.
Most of Mondays through Thursdays are spent working on your project. This is time you and your mentor will work together as you learn the project and procedures and eventually work more independently. Every intern completes a poster to summarize their results, and presents the poster at an event at the end of the summer to which museum staff are invited. Many interns also present their work at a professional meeting in the year following their internship.
Fridays are program days, with each week devoted to a different museum department (e.g., Paleobiology, Botany, Anthropology, etc.). These start with a lecture in the morning, followed by collections tours and other events related to that day's discipline. In addition, we have various other events, some of them optional (so you can work on your project instead if you want) such as professional development seminars on topics such as going to graduate school, professionalism, research ethics, etc.
The internship is full time (40 hours a week) for 10 weeks. Interns typically work during business hours from Monday through Friday, but the specific hours you work may depend on your mentor's schedule or project (example, field work or other research collection trips). There aren't any vacation days; however, for very special occasions (a family wedding, a funeral, a family reunion or graduation) we typically excuse interns for a day or two. Weekends are your own as are holidays (example July 4th) and interns typically have no trouble having a lot of fun together.
