Intern, Technical High School Year Round - Counter-Autonomy and Machine Learning, Onsite

Sandia National Laboratories; New Mexico; On-site; USD 28,000 - 41,000; Part time

Job summary

Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico is seeking a Technical High School Intern for a year-round position in the Counter-Autonomy and Intrusion Detection department. You will work with staff on projects involving algorithm development, programming, and data collection for ML initiatives onsite at Sandia.

You will learn fundamentals of computer science, programming, and ML while assisting in building data collection software stacks, debugging multi-language software, and using Git for

Qualifications

• Attending a local high school.
• Enrolled full time, as defined by the school.
• Minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0/4.0.
• Ability to work up to 25 hours per week during the academic year, and up to 40 hours per week during the summer.
• Minimum 16 years of age.
• U.S. citizens, legal permanent residents, asylees or refugees in the U.S.

Responsibilities

• Perform entry-level work within a mentored research and development and engineering environment working with Sandia staff on projects that involve a variety of disciplines.
• Support projects in the fundamentals of science and engineering applied to physical security.
• Assist in the application of engineering principles and methods to develop or demonstrate new designs, concepts, materials, machines, products, processes, or systems.
• Learn the fundamentals of computer science, programming, and machine learning, while also assisting in the development of data collection software stacks.
• Assist in maintaining and debugging multi-language software projects and working within Git repositories.
• Learn concepts of machine learning and data science and assist staff in developing and training machine learning algorithms.
• Write up summaries of your work and present and discuss it with your mentor.

Skills

Git version control

Basic programming

UML diagramming

Object-oriented design

Teamwork

Education

High school student

Tools

Python

Java

C++

Matlab

Job description

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Intern, Technical High School Year Round - Counter-Autonomy and Machine Learning, Onsite

We are seeking a Technical High School Intern for a year-round position in our Counter-Autonomy and Intrusion Detection department. Daily activities will involve working with staff members and technologists to support multiple projects requiring algorithm development and programming. This involves set up of equipment and sensors for tests and experiments, data collection, data labeling, and data curation for machine learning projects. The successful candidate must be willing to learn a variety of topics in the domain of physical security, computer science, robotics, computer engineering, and data science.

In this job you will:

Perform entry-level work within a mentored research and development and engineering environment working in conjunction with Sandia staff on projects that involve a variety of disciplines.

Support projects in the fundamentals of science and engineering applied to physical security.

Assist in the application of engineering principles and methods to develop or demonstrate new designs, concepts, materials, machines, products, processes, or systems.

Learn the fundamentals of computer science, programming, and machine learning, while also assisting in the development of data collection software stacks.

Assist in maintaining and debugging multi-language software projects and working within Git repositories.

Learn concepts of machine learning and data science and assist staff in developing and training machine learning algorithms.

Write up summaries of your work and present and discuss it with your mentor.

Salary Range:

At Sandia, we value the important work done by our interns and its contribution to National Security. Because of this, our interns earn competitive pay rates. Our pay structure is based on earned credit hours, classification, and degree level. Your pay rate will be determined during the hire process and included in your offer package. You can view the Intern Pay Rate chart here (https://www.sandia.gov/app/uploads/sites/51/2024/12/Student-Rate-Sheet-2025.docx) .

Qualifications We Require:

You bring the confidence and skills to be eligible for the job by meeting these minimum requirements:

Attending a local high school

Enrolled full time, as defined by the school

Minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0/4.0

Ability to work up to 25 hours per week during the academic year, and up to 40 hours per week during the summer

Minimum 16 years of age

U.S. citizens, legal permanent residents, asylees or refugees in the U.S.

Qualifications We Desire:

Stronger candidates will possess many of the following desired qualifications:

Self-starter and willing to learn new skills in a team environment

Good oral and written communication skills

A high GPA

General knowledge and understanding of a suite of software, such as Microsoft Office

Ability to work at least 5 hours per week onsite at Sandia National Laboratories during the school year, with exceptions for academic deadlines / needs

Ability to work up to 40 hours per week during the summer or school breaks

Basic programming familiarity or willingness to learn (e.g., Python, C, C++, Matlab, Java, or similar)

Willingness to work outdoors during summers assisting in field testing and data collection activities under supervision of lab staff

Strong problem-solving and analytical skills

Familiarity with Git version control

Experience designing software programs, UML diagramming, and object-oriented design principles.

A technical hobby outside of school, such as building and flying drones, mechatronics, building computer networks, building single-board computer systems, and 3D printing

Posting Duration:

This posting will be open for application submissions for a minimum of three (3) calendar days, including the 'posting date'. Sandia reserves the right to extend the posting date at any time.

About Our Team:

The Mission of dept 6554 is to counter evolving autonomous threats and improve the performance of physical security systems. We conduct research, development, testing, and evaluation of components and technologies to advance the science of physical security. This enables customers to mitigate threats to nuclear materials and other high value targets by improving the ability to sense, assess, track, and respond to physical intrusions. Our work addresses current physical security operational challenges and evolving threats such as unmanned systems, including unmanned aircraft systems (UAS). We are assisting NNSA in implementing unmanned systems into their operations. We specialize in the testing of Counter-UAS (C-UAS) systems and technologies, which counter the danger posed by UAS, and we are the C-UAS test agent for DOE, NNSA, and DHS. We leverage innovations from industry, related laboratory-directed R&D, novel signature collection and processing techniques, and partnerships across the laboratory to address real-world problems. We are creating software solutions to implement and deploy the results of our work across the NNSA physical security enterprise.

About Sandia:

Sandia National Laboratories is the nation’s premier science and engineering lab for national security and technology innovation, with teams of specialists focused on cutting-edge work in a broad array of areas. Some of the main reasons we love our jobs:

Challenging work with amazing impact that contributes to security, peace, and freedom worldwide

Extraordinary co-workers

Some of the best tools, equipment, and research facilities in the world

Career advancement and enrichment opportunities

Flexible work arrangements for many positions include 9/80 (work 80 hours every two weeks, with every other Friday off) and 4/10 (work 4 ten-hour days each week) compressed workweeks, part-time work, and telecommuting (a mix of onsite work and working from home)

Generous vacation, strong medical and other benefits, competitive 401k, learning opportunities, relocation assistance and amenities aimed at creating a solid work/life balance*

World-changing technologies. Life-changing careers. Learn more about Sandia at: http://www.sandia.gov

*These benefits vary by job classification.

Security Clearance:

This position does not currently require a Department of Energy (DOE) security clearance.

Sandia will conduct a pre-employment drug test and background review that includes checks of personal references, credit, law enforcement records, and employment/education verifications. Furthermore, employees in New Mexico need to pass a U.S. Air Force background screen for access to Kirtland Air Force Base. Substance abuse or illegal drug use, falsification of information, criminal activity, serious misconduct or other indicators of untrustworthiness can cause access to be denied or terminated, resulting in the inability to perform the duties assigned and subsequent termination of employment. Under federal law, citizens and agents of the People's Republic of China, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Democratic People's Republic of North Korea, and the Russian Federation are generally prohibited from accessing Sandia National Laboratories. Accordingly, such individuals will not be considered for employment unless they are also a citizen of the United States.

If hired without a clearance and it subsequently becomes necessary to obtain and maintain one for the position, or you bid on positions that require a clearance, a pre-processing background review may be conducted prior to a required federal background investigation. Applicants for a DOE security clearance need to be U.S. citizens. If you hold more than one citizenship (i.e., of the U.S. and another country), your ability to obtain a security clearance may be impacted.

Members of the workforce (MOWs) hired at Sandia who require uncleared access for greater than 179 days during their employment, are required to go through the Uncleared Personal Identity Verification (UPIV) process. Access includes physical and/or cyber (logical) access, as well as remote access to any NNSA information technology (IT) systems. UPIV requirements are not applicable to individuals who require a DOE personnel security clearance for the performance of their SNL employment or to foreign nationals. The UPIV process will include the completion of a USAccess Enrollment, SF-85 (Questionnaire for Non-Sensitive Positions) and OF-306 (Declaration of for Federal Employment). An unfavorable UPIV determination will result in immediate retrieval of the SNL issued badge, removal of cyber (logical) access and/or removal from SNL subcontract. All MOWs may appeal the unfavorable UPIV determination to DOE/NNSA immediately. If the appeal is unsuccessful, the MOW may try to go through the UPIV process one year after the decision date.

EEO:

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, or veteran status and any other protected class under state or federal law.

NNSA Requirements for MedPEDs:

If you have a Medical Portable Electronic Device (MedPED), such as a pacemaker, defibrillator, drug-releasing pump, hearing aids, or diagnostic equipment and other equipment for measuring, monitoring, and recording body functions such as heartbeat and brain waves, if employed by Sandia National Laboratories you may be required to comply with NNSA security requirements for MedPEDs.

If you have a MedPED and you are selected for an on-site interview at Sandia National Laboratories, there may be additional steps necessary to ensure compliance with NNSA security requirements prior to the interview date.

• Affordable housing, reasonable cost of living
• Minimal traffic congestion compared to larger cities
• At Sandia, recruiters manually review resumes on each job posting instead of using a resume screening software program
• By following the best practices outlined, this ensures that recruiters can accurately determine your qualifications for the position