Goddard Earth Sciences & Technology Center Staff

2008 Graduate Student Summer Program in Earth System Science

Deadline for applications is February 28, 2008

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center’s (GSFC) Earth Sciences Division, in collaboration with the Goddard Earth Sciences and Technology (GEST) Center of the University of Maryland Baltimore County, is offering a limited number of graduate student research opportunities through its Graduate Student Summer Program (GSSP). This prestigious program is in its eighth year and is designed to stimulate interest in interdisciplinary Earth sciences studies by enabling selected students to carry out an intensive research project at GSFC’s Earth Sciences Division, which can be applied to the student’s graduate thesis. GSSP 2008 will take place from June 2 to August 8, 2008.

Positions are available to students interested in any Earth sciences field conducive to the research of NASA GSFC’S Earth Sciences Division. Each student will be teamed with a NASA Goddard scientist mentor with parallel scientific interests. NASA mentors can be drawn from any of the participating Earth Sciences divisions which include: The Laboratory for Atmospheres, The Laboratory for Hydrospheric and Biospheric Sciences, The Global Modeling & Assimilation Office, The Global Change Data Center and The Software Integration & Visualization Office.

Additional laboratory locations include oceanography and instrumentation research on coastal zone processes at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility (WFF) on the Eastern Shore of Virginia, and global climate change studies at the Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York City. For additional information on the various Earth Sciences departments, please visit: http://earthsciences.gsfc.nasa.gov. The program begins with an orientation session. You will then meet with your mentor to begin your research project. During the program there will be a lecture series aimed at current popular Earth sciences topics. To complete the program, students will be expected to produce final oral and written reports on their summer research activities.

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

The program is open to students enrolled in accredited U.S. graduate programs in the Earth, physical or biological sciences, mathematics, or engineering disciplines. Preference will be given to students who have completed at least one year of graduate study.

Students must commit for the full ten-week period (June 2, 2008–August 8, 2008). Participants must be enrolled in a U.S. college or university, and be either U.S. citizens or holders of a Green Card indicating their intention of becoming citizens. All selected students will be subject to a pre-employment security background check under the current security guidelines.

TO APPLY

The application must include:

Application Form (MS Word document format to allow you to type on the form and print from your computer)
Updated curriculum vitae.
Two letters of reference.
Transcripts that cover the last two academic years.
A statement of citizenship/residency. Acceptance to the program will be contingent on providing proof of citizenship or residency.
A project proposal with the name of a suggested GSFC Earth Sciences mentor. It is strongly encouraged that students contact the potential GSFC mentor prior to submitting an application if a scientist is already known. Any scientist at GSFC, WFF, or GISS may qualify as a mentor, as long as that scientist’s research is parallel to the student’s thesis research. If a student does not know an Earth Scientist at GSFC, we will make our best efforts to match the student with an appropriate mentor.

Please visit NASA GSFC's Earth sciences page for further information on the various Earth sciences departments and scientists.

COMPENSATION AND SUPPORT

Students will receive $12–$15/hour (depending on level) for forty hours per week over the ten-week period. In addition, GEST will reimburse economy domestic return travel expenses for out-of-town participants. Housing will be provided for non-local program participants only at program expense. Alternate or additional accommodations cannot be supported.

DEADLINE

Applications must be received no later than February 28, 2008.
Selection announcements will be made by late March 2008.

CONTACT INFORMATION

Valerie Casasanto
Program Coordinator
UMBC GEST/JCET Centers
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Mail Code 610.6
Greenbelt, MD 20771
E-mail: vcasa@umbc.edu
Telephone: 301.286.6605

Last Updated February 6, 2008 3:32 PM