NSA Summer 2027 Internship Program - Computer Science Internship - Entry Program

National Security Agency; Fort Meade (MD); On-site; USD 45,000 - 67,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Housing accommodations

Travel entitlements

Annual and sick leave

Federal holidays

Job summary

National Security Agency invites students to join the Summer Internship Program in Computer Science at Fort Meade, MD. This 12-week, immersive internship, running mid-May to mid-August, places interns on projects across Big Data, AI, cybersecurity, and related domains with guidance from NSA mentors. Open to undergraduates, graduates, and PhD candidates depending on requirements.

Requires U.S. citizenship and ability to obtain TS/SCI clearance after background checks; GPA of 3.0+ preferred.

Qualifications

• Must be a U.S. Citizen and enrolled in a degree-seeking program at time of application
• Specific education requirements vary by program
• Preferred GPA 3.0 or higher
• Must be eligible to obtain TS/SCI clearance after background checks
• Available for interviews in Oct 2026–Apr 2027”
• Majors listed are highly recommended but other majors may be considered

Responsibilities

• Interns are assigned to projects contributing to NSA's mission
• Projects span Big Data, Information Retrieval, Security, ML/AI, HLT/Computational Linguistics
• 12-week immersive experiences from mid-May to mid-August
• Live in NSA spaces with mentorship and exposure to mission-critical problems

Education

Pursuing degree in Computer Science or closely related discipline

Enrollment in degree-seeking program (undergraduate, graduate, doctorate)

Preferred GPA 3.0 or higher

Majoring in Computer Science or closely related discipline

Calculus I and Calculus II

Data Structures

Discrete Mathematics or Discrete Structures

Computer Organization and Assembly Language

Principles of Programming Languages

Software Design and Development

Operating Systems

Compiler Theory

Computer Architecture

Database Management Systems

Computer Networks

Artificial Intelligence

Parallel and Distributed Processing

Information Retrieval

Job description

NSA has received approval from the Department of War to hire for specific critical positions during the hiring freeze, per DoW memorandum 'Immediate Civilian Hiring Freeze for Alignment with National Defense Priorities' dated 28 February.

Job Description

NSA Summer 2027 Internship Program - Computer Science Internship - Entry Program - Maryland

Fort George G. Meade Complex, MD
Pay Plan: GG , Grade: 04/1 to 09/10
Open: 2026-08-15, Close: 2026-09-05

Job Posting: 1261542

Responsibilities

The NSA Summer Internship Programs at our Fort Meade, MD location offers students exciting, impactful professional work opportunities (with pay and limited benefits!) to grow their knowledge of the Intelligence Community and federal government while advancing NSA's two primary missions: 1) Collecting, analyzing, and producing foreign signals intelligence; and 2) Providing cybersecurity solutions and guidance to protect critical national infrastructure. These summer internship opportunities are open to students who are pursuing education in a variety of degree programs.

Computer Science Internship Program: The Computer Science Intern Program (CSIP) is an intense and exciting 12-week immersive internship open to select college undergraduate and graduate students majoring in Computer Science or closely related disciplines. Interns are assigned to projects that contribute to NSA's mission. Projects are typically in the areas of:

• - Big Data
• - Information Retrieval
• - Information Visualization
• - Computer and Network Security
• - Machine Learning/Artificial Intelligence
• - Human Language Technology/Computational Linguistics
• - Ontology/Taxonomy and Graphical Analysis
• - Information Query and Question Answering
• - Knowledge and Data Representation, Distillation, and Sharing
• - Knowledge and Database Crawling
• - Software Agent Planning and Control
• - Signal Processing
• - Architecture & Systems

Job Summary

Join students from across the country and lend your knowledge to national security in one of NSA's over 30 summer internship programs. These 12 week paid programs run from mid-May to mid-August and are open to undergraduate freshman up to Ph.D. students depending on internship requirements. These internships are open to a wide variety of majors and give students the opportunity to work directly with mission-critical problems and experience the excitement of working in NSA spaces.

Qualifications

To be accepted into the NSA Summer Internship - Computer Science Internship Program, candidates:

• Must be a U.S. Citizen
• Must be enrolled in a degree-seeking program (undergraduate, graduate, doctorate) at time of application
• Specific education requirements vary by program
• Preferred cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher
• Must be eligible to be granted a TS/SCI security clearance after successfully completing a background investigation, a Full-scope Polygraph and a Psychological Evaluation
• Must be available and in the U.S. for operational and technical interviews and other applicable processing, both in-person and via telephone/internet, between the months of October 2026 and April 2027
• Must major in Computer Science or a very closely related discipline.
• Data Structures
• Discrete Mathematics or Discrete Structures
• Calculus I and Calculus IICandidates are also expected to have taken courses in two or more of the following areas:
• Computer Organization and Assembly Language
• Principles of Programming Languages
• Software Design and Development
• Operating Systems
• Compiler Theory
• Computer Architecture
• Database Management Systems
• Computer Graphics
• Automata Theory and Formal Languages
• Software Engineering
• Human Computer Interaction
• Computer Networks
• Vulnerability Discovery
• Principles of Computer Security
• Computer Network Security
• Information Retrieval
• Human Language Technologies
• Artificial Intelligence
• Parallel and Distributed Processing
• Signal Processing
• Probability and Statistics
• Linear Algebra
• PLEASE NOTE: Other majors may be considered, however the majors listed above are highly recommended.
• PLEASE NOTE: You may be required to complete an Unproctored Internet Testing (UIT) requirement measuring cognitive ability, motivation, and English proficiency.

Students are paid a competitive salary commensurate with their education level.

• All internships are 10 - 12 weeks during the summer.
• Receive annual leave, sick leave and paid federal holidays.
• Students who attend school in excess of 75 miles from Fort Meade, MD are eligible for housing accommodations and travel entitlements of a round trip airfare ticket to and from school or mileage reimbursement up to the cost of a government-issued airline ticket.
• Daily transportation to and from work is NOT provided. Students participating in the program are highly encouraged to bring a vehicle. Carpooling with other students MAY be available, but is NOT guaranteed.
• Participation in agency-wide extracurricular programs.

DCIPS Disclaimer

The National Security Agency (NSA) is part of the DoD Intelligence Community Defense Civilian Intelligence Personnel System (DCIPS). All positions in the NSA are in the Excepted Services under 10 United States Codes (USC) 1601 appointment authority.