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US Intelligence Agencies
US Intelligence Agencies
Application Timelines
Application Timelines
The application process for Intelligence Agency internships and jobs typically begins a year or more in advance. This is primarily in order to give time for a security clearance to be processed. These positions are only open to U.S. citizens.
Internships:
Internships:
The DOD offers a wide range of internships over the summer. Opportunities are available in intelligence, research, security, STEM, etc.
Applications/expressions of interest are typically due 6-12 months in advance. Apply and find positions through https://www.cia.gov/ehl/careers. Internships will not always be posted and available so it is good practice to check postings on the CIA website frequently.
The NSA primarily offers summer internships targeted at Mission Support (civil liberties, privacy and transparency, security and counterintelligence, strategic communications, etc.), STEM (computer science, engineering, mathematics, etc.), and Language and Intelligence Analysis. Depending on your major and skill set, students will be assigned to a specific program.
All paid internship programs span 12 weeks during the summer and include benefits such as paid time off, holiday, and sick leave. Interns may also be eligible for subsidized housing assistance and travel reimbursement. The majority of these opportunities are offered at NSA headquarters in Maryland, but some internships are available at field sites in Colorado, Georgia, Texas, Hawaii and Utah.
Application timeline: Applications are accepted in the fall for the following summer. Applications typically open in September and close in October.
National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency
The NGA offers undergraduate summer internships. Available positions are posted at this job board.
The FBI Honors Internship Program is ideal for undergraduate students between their junior and senior years.
Summer Internship applications are typically open August – September. There are currently no job postings open, but sign up for job alerts to be notified when new openings become available.
The Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) is the agency that responsible for doing intelligence for the U.S. military. The DIA offers their Summer Internship Program, Academic Semester Internship Program, and the Cooperative Education Program.
Application timeline: 12 + months in advance. Applications open the spring the year before. So applications for Summer 2027 open in Spring 2026.
Careers:
Careers:
Applications are typically due 6-12 months in advance. New roles open frequently and close quickly. It is good practice to check for open positions often.
The Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) is the agency that responsible for doing intelligence for the U.S. military. They run the Naval Research Enterprise internship program.
NSA provides foreign signals intelligence (SIGINT) to our nation's policymakers and military forces. NSA Cybersecurity prevents and eradicates threats to U.S. national security systems with a focus on the Defense Industrial Base and the improvement of our weapons’ security. Through our Cybersecurity Collaboration Center, NSA partners with allies, private industry, academics, and researchers to strengthen awareness and collaboration to advance the state of cybersecurity
FBI Collegiate Hiring Initiative
The Collegiate Hiring Initiative (CHI) recruits graduating seniors or individuals who have undergraduate, graduate, or PhD degrees to begin their careers in our hands-on, team environment. It is a full-time, entry-level hiring program.
Other Opportunities:
NSA Cooperative Education Program
In this program, students alternate semester of full-time work with full-time study, completing a minimum of 52 weeks of Co-op work experience prior to graduation. Students must apply for the program as a sophomore or freshman in their second year of college. The paid program accepts applications twice a year -- beginning in September and February. Co-op is offered at NSA headquarters and in Hawaii.
Focus areas include:
STEM Track: Students will play a role in the development of secure communications in the production of foreign intelligence. The following majors are eligible: computer science, computer/electrical engineering, cybersecurity (technical track), data science or mathematics.
Language Track: Students who are majoring in Chinese language-focused studies will work with original written or spoken foreign language, determine the relevance of the intelligence collected, research it, analyze it, and put it into context for dissemination to national-level policy makers, military commanders and other customers.
National Security Education Program
Information can be found here.
The David L. Boren National Security Education Act of 1991 mandates that the Secretary of Defense create and sustain the National Security Education Program to award scholarships to U.S. undergraduate students, fellowships to U.S. graduate students, and grants to U.S. institutions of higher education to provide foreign language insturction in languages critical to national security. Today, NSEP manages multiple programs to provide proficiency among graduating students in many languages critical to U.S. competitiveness and security.
David L. Boren Scholarships: Individual awards to U.S. undergraduate students to study critical languages in geographic areas strategic to U.S. national security, and in which U.S. students are traditionally under-represented.
Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab
The lab serves as a technical resource for the Department of Defense, NASA, and other government agencies. APL has developed numerous systems and technologies in the areas of air and missile defense, surface and undersea naval warfare, computer security, and space science and spacecraft construction. While APL provides research and engineering services to the government, it is not a traditional defense contractor, as it is a UARC and a division of Johns Hopkins University. APL is a scientific and engineering research and development division, rather than an academic division, of Johns Hopkins.
The Applied Physics Lab has historically recruited strongly from Dartmouth College. Internships are traditionally offered in the summer however internships have been offered year round for Dartmouth students. Please reach out if you have questions and check Handshake for opportunities.
Applications for college internships and new graduate opportunities for 2026 are currently available.
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