SUMMER PROGRAM FOR OPERATIONS RESEARCH TECHNOLOGY (SPORT)

PROGRAM OVERVIEW 

The Summer Program for Operations Research Technology (SPORT) at the National Security Agency (NSA) offers graduate students the opportunity to apply their academic knowledge in a stimulating professional environment. As a SPORT intern, you will work closely with full-time Operations Research, Modeling and Simulation analysts applying technical skills you learned in the classroom to challenging, real-world problems supporting the mission of the NSA. You will develop and practice strong communication and leadership skills by interacting with and presenting your findings directly to your fellow interns, project sponsors, and NSA senior leadership.

PROGRAM DATES 

All NSA Summer Programs are 12 weeks long, with flexibility considered for academic schedule conflicts. The SPORT program begins in late May or early June and concludes in mid-August (dates vary by year).

BENEFITS 

• Paid internship position (pay commensurate with academic work and experience) 

• Paid holidays, vacation, sick leave and team building hours 

• Flexible work schedule with an opportunity to also earn credit time 

• Tours of NSA and Intelligence Community (IC) offices 

• Internal career fair to explore opportunities for future full-time employment 

• Located in the Baltimore/Washington area near to Ft. Meade, MD interns can take advantage of the cultural attractions in Washington DC, Baltimore, Annapolis and the surrounding area.

QUALIFICATIONS 

We accept approximately 8 graduate students into the SPORT program each year. Top applicants meet the following qualifications: 

• Must be US Citizen (no exceptions) 

• Must be enrolled in MS (combined BS/MS also accepted) or PhD program in an area closely related to operations research, such as applied mathematics, decision analysis, statistics, data analytics, industrial engineering, systems engineering, or computer engineering. 

• Current undergraduate students will not be accepted. 

• Applicants must be returning to school for at least one semester following the conclusion of the summer internship (no exceptions) 

• Applicants must successfully complete an extensive background investigation and polygraph to obtain a security clearance

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS 

Visit www.IntelligenceCareers.gov/nsa and search for 1191818-NSA Summer Internship – Mathematics (MD) to complete an online application form.

We require both undergraduate and graduate school transcripts from every school attended to be sent to sport@nsa.gov (a list of currently enrolled courses may substitute for a graduate school transcript if currently enrolled in first semester of study), and accept either unofficial or official transcripts.

In addition, please send a copy of your current resume to sport@nsa.gov.

Application consists of: 

1. A completed online application form 

2. Transcripts from both undergraduate and graduate studies 

3. A copy of your resume

Applications missing any of these three pieces will not be considered.

Applications close October 31st 

CONTACT 

Please contact sport@nsa.gov or 443-634-6639 for questions.