The Wright Scholar Research Assistant Program is an Air Force Research Laboratory initiative designed to expose high school juniors and seniors to various disciplines of engineering and science in an effort to further their interest in future STEM career options. Wright Scholars are competitively selected to work as fulltime, paid interns for 9 weeks during the summer. A panel of scientists, engineers, and educators use a "blind" review system to score and rank student applications and essays (names and personal data are removed from applications prior to review to prevent biases). Selected students are then matched with a mentor to work on a research project for the duration of their internship. At the end of the program, Wright Scholars are required to give a formal presentation of their project work to their peers and mentors, and a program certificate is awarded.

Deadline to apply

– 01 November through 10 January

Criteria

– 16 years by program start date of 1 June

– Must be a high school junior or senior at time of application

– Interest in STEM career

– U.S. citizen

– GPA of 3.5 or greater, transportation to/from work site

– Must have a valid state driver’s license