Multiple Paid Internships in Geodesy Available for Undergraduate Students during Summer 2025 at Michigan State University!

What is Geodesy?

Geodesy is the study of the Earth's shape, size, orientation, and gravity.  Measurements of these parameters are used to determine precise coordinates of points on Earth and track how those points move over time.  Modern geodesy uses tools such as high-precision GPS/GNSS*, satellite-based radar, and land- and airborne laser scanning systems to improve our understanding of a wide range of topics including road building and construction, management of crop planting, navigation, earthquake and volcanic hazards, and sea level rise.  

Geodesy draws from a number of other fields including math, physics, geology, environmental science, computer science, and engineering and opens pathways to a variety of careers in government, academia, and private industry.

*GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) is a general term for all global satellite positioning systems.  GPS is the global satellite positioning system run by the United States.

Want to learn more about Geodesy?

The MSU Summer Geodesy Internship is an eight-week paid program funded by the National Geodetic Survey to allow undergraduate students to learn about the field of geodesy, explore geodetic data and techniques through a research project, learn about careers in geodesy, and interact with a variety of geodesy professionals within and outside of academia.  

The internship program will run from June 9 - August 1, 2025 in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences of Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan.  The application deadline is February 1, 2025.

To learn more, please check out the links below.  If you have additional questions, contact Dr. Julie Elliott (email).