Summer Research Program Intern 2027,… at MIT Lincoln… · Lexington

The Systems and Analysis group evaluates concepts vital to maintaining the technological advantage of the United States Air Force. Our recommendations inform government decision-makers and impact future military acquisitions and current day missions. Our independent assessments rely on modeling and simulation at the right fidelity, backed by ground and flight testing performed by our partner group, Tactical Defense Systems.

We work on a broad range of topics critical to Air Force missions:

1. Survivability of aircraft against air defenses – today and into the future (strike bombers, fighter jets, reconnaissance aircraft, and aerial refueling tankers)
2. Enabling fighter technologies and air combat tactics
3. Tactical sensor performance across the electromagnetic spectrum – radar to infrared
4. Impact of radar jamming and electronic protection techniques
5. Advanced air-to-air missile and air-to-surface weapon capabilities
6. Myth-busting of unconventional technologies for military applications

Position Overview

As a summer intern, you will:

• Learn systems analysis skills. Our staff excel at approaching large, complex problems by breaking them down into their basic components, evaluating what matters at the appropriate fidelity, and explaining key drivers to non-technical audiences.
• Conduct a summer project with guidance from a full-time staff mentor. Projects typically revolve around developing physics-based models and data analysis tools to support group assessments (spanning a range of focus areas). Specific summer project assignments may be tailored to the interest / background of the intern.
• Collaborate with full-time staff mentor to research and compile relevant technical information and participate in bi-weekly status meetings with the group.
• Run small-scale simulations and investigate technical topics using the models and data analysis tools created over the summer.
• Deliver an end-of-summer presentation to interns and staff summarizing your internship project. This includes working with a team of professional graphic artists to build clear, concise, and technically accurate slides suitable for a wide range of audiences.
• Have the opportunity to flex technical skills beyond group project by participating in a friendly laboratory-wide internship competition to pitch a new technique or device to solve a current-day problem.

Desired Skills

Given the wide range of focus areas in our group, we seek the following attributes:

1. Our staff members come from a wide range of academic backgrounds, including physics, astronomy, chemistry, engineering, computer science, mathematics, and economics. We will consider candidates that have completed at least 2 years towards a degree (BS/BA/MS/PhD) in any technical field within science, math, or engineering.
2. Ability to program in a technical environment (e.g., MATLAB, Python, C++, Java, etc.).
3. Strong technical skills, intellectual curiosity, and eagerness to tackle open-ended problems
4. Demonstrated ability to communicate complex technical information to a broad audience.
5. Interest in modeling and simulation. Our group is software-focused, but we do collaborate with other hardware-focused groups to validate our models with test data.

We are committed to building an inclusive and well-rounded workplace with diverse backgrounds and skillsets. We encourage any interested candidate to apply to our team even if your past experience doesn't align with every job responsibility included in this role. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

Summer Research Program

The Summer Research Program offers students the chance to apply their academic knowledge to real-world national security challenges while working alongside leading scientists and engineers. As an SRP intern, you’ll engage in hands-on research, receive dedicated mentorship, and take part in professional development opportunities including workshops, tech talks, and networking events—all while building connections within a vibrant community of peers.

• Internships are typically 10–12 weeks, with flexible start and end dates, typically May through early August.
• Housing support is available for eligible non-local interns, including access to discounted university housing in Boston and a one-time taxable relocation payment.
• Complimentary daily shuttle transportation is provided from Boston-based housing to and from the Lab.

Learn more about the Summer Research Program at: https://www.ll.mit.edu/careers/student-opportunities/summer-research-program

Compensation

Hourly pay rates below are effective January 2026 – December 2026 and will be reviewed again for Summer 2027. Rates are based on the highest academic year or degree completed before the internship start date.

• Freshman year completed: $25.00/hour
• Sophomore year completed: $27.00/hour
• Junior year completed: $29.00/hour
• 4th year of 5 year program completed, no degree conferred: $32.00/hour
• Bachelors completed: $34.50/hour
• Bachelors + 1, one year of graduate study completed: $36.50/hour
• Bachelors + 2, two years of graduate study completed: $38.00/hour
• MS completed: $39.00/hour
• MS + 1, one year of graduate study completed after the MS: $41.00/hour
• MS + 2, two years of graduate study completed after the MS: $42.50/hour
• MS + 3, three years of graduate study completed after the MS: $43.50/hour

Selected candidate will be subject to a pre-employment background investigation and must be able to obtain and maintain a Secret level DoD security clearance.

MIT Lincoln Laboratory is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment and will not be discriminated against on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, veteran status, disability status, or genetic information; U.S. citizenship is required.

Requisition ID: 43463