Post-Undergraduate/Graduate (Summer) Advanced Computing Operations - AI Engineering Internship

Posting TitlePost-Undergraduate/Graduate (Summer) Advanced Computing Operations - AI Engineering Internship

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LocationCO - Golden

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Position TypeIntern (Fixed Term)

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Hours Per Week40

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Working at NRELThe National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), located at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in Golden, Colorado is the nation's primary laboratory for research and development of renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies.

Join a team of world-class scientists, engineers, and visionaries dedicated to shaping the world’s energy future through cutting-edge research and innovation. From our vision to our NREL community, we are unique in the research community. We are focused on impact. From our work in basic sciences to systems engineering, analysis, demonstration, and deployment, we are focused on solving market-relevant problems that result in advanced, secure, reliable, and affordable energy systems. We are trusted clean energy leaders, developing cost-saving solutions that make U.S. industries more competitive, and support job creation and economic growth across rural and urban communities.

At NREL, we offer a unique, mission-driven work environment with cutting-edge facilities and multidisciplinary research teams. NREL's environment offers strong partnerships with industry, academia, and other national laboratories, as well as professional development opportunities and a competitive benefits package for employees.

Learn about NREL’s critical objectives: NREL's Mission and Vision.

Job Description

The Advanced Computing Operations group (ACO) facilitates cutting edge computational innovations and testbeds to find tomorrow's solutions today. Collaboration is at the heart of our work — our staff partner with scientists across NREL to deeply understand their computational challenges, to develop or co-develop tailored solutions, and leveraging our hybrid compute offerings, to provide the technical expertise needed to push boundaries in renewable energy and sustainability. 

Our team operates and maintains several large-scale HPC systems, providing a robust and secure environment for scientists and engineers to run complex simulations and analyze large datasets. We are seeking an intern to contribute to projects involving the deployment and serving of Large Language Models (LLM) and Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) on-premises.

The intern will work closely with our team to design and implement efficient deployment pipelines for AI models and tooling, ensuring seamless integration with our Advanced Computing systems. They will participate in the development and testing of new features and capabilities and collaborate with our team to improve existing tools and pipelines.

Job duties and tasks may include providing support with:

• Developing and testing containerized LLMs using Docker and Kubernetes
• Designing and implementing model serving pipelines
• Optimizing model deployment and serving for performance and scalability
• Participating in discussions and providing project status updates
• Updating/creating technical documentation

Through this internship, the student will gain valuable experience working with AI technologies, containerization, and orchestration. They will also have the opportunity to develop their skills in programming languages such as Python and learn about the latest advancements in LLM and RAG research.

To learn more about the work our team does, check out the following links:

NREL Advanced Computing

NREL Computational Science

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Basic QualificationsMinimum of a 3.0 cumulative grade point average.

Undergraduate: Must be enrolled as a full-time student in a bachelor’s degree program from an accredited institution.
Post Undergraduate: Earned a bachelor’s degree within the past 12 months. Eligible for an internship period of up to one year.

Graduate: Must be enrolled as a full-time student in a master’s degree program from an accredited institution.
Post Graduate: Earned a master’s degree within the past 12 months. Eligible for an internship period of up to one year.
Graduate + PhD: Completed master’s degree and enrolled as PhD student from an accredited institution.

Please Note:
• Applicants are responsible for uploading official or unofficial school transcripts, as part of the application process.
• If selected for position, a letter of recommendation will be required as part of the hiring process.
• Must meet educational requirements prior to employment start date.

* Must meet educational requirements prior to employment start date.

Additional Required Qualifications

• Completed an undergraduate degree in computer engineering, computer science, or related field
• Strong programming skills in Python, Linux shell scripting (bash, etc.), and git
• Demonstrated knowledge or experience with containerization using Docker and/or Apptainer
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• Effective written and verbal communication skills

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with container orchestration using Kubernetes
• Familiarity with API design and development (RESTful APIs, GraphQL, etc.)
• Knowledge of microservices architecture and service mesh technologies (Istio, Linkerd, etc.)
• Experience with CI/CD pipelines and automation tools (Jenkins, GitLab CI/CD, etc.)
•  Model serving using tools like TensorFlow Serving, Ray Serve, or vLLM

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Job Application Submission Window

The anticipated closing window for application submission is up to 30 days and may be extended as needed.

Annual Salary Range (based on full-time 40 hours per week)Job Profile: / Annual Salary Range: $43,700 - $69,900

NREL takes into consideration a candidate’s education, training, and experience, expected quality and quantity of work, required travel (if any), external market and internal value, including seniority and merit systems, and internal pay alignment when determining the salary level for potential new employees. In compliance with the Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, a potential new employee’s salary history will not be used in compensation decisions.

Benefits SummaryBenefits include medical, dental, and vision insurance; 403(b) Employee Savings Plan with employer match*; and sick leave (where required by law). NREL employees may be eligible for, but are not guaranteed, performance-, merit-, and achievement- based awards that include a monetary component. Some positions may be eligible for relocation expense reimbursement. Internships projected to be less than 20 hours per week are not eligible for medical, dental, or vision benefits.

* Based on eligibility rules

Badging RequirementNREL is subject to Department of Energy (DOE) access restrictions. All employees must also be able to obtain and maintain a federal Personal Identity Verification (PIV) card as required by Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12), which includes a favorable background investigation. Intern assignments extending beyond six months will be subject to this requirement.

Drug Free Workplace

NREL is committed to maintaining a drug-free workplace in accordance with the federal Drug-Free Workplace Act and complies with federal laws prohibiting the possession and use of illegal drugs. Under federal law, marijuana remains an illegal drug.

If you are offered employment at NREL, you must pass a pre-employment drug test prior to commencing employment. Unless prohibited by state or local law, the pre-employment drug test will include marijuana. If you test positive on the pre-employment drug test, your offer of employment may be withdrawn.

Submission Guidelines

Please note that in order to be considered an applicant for any position at NREL you must submit an application form for each position for which you believe you are qualified. Applications are not kept on file for future positions. Please include a cover letter and resume with each position application.

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Equal Opportunity Employer

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard basis of age (40 and over), color, disability, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, domestic partner status, military or veteran status, national origin/ancestry, race, religion, creed, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding), sexual orientation, and any other applicable status protected by federal, state, or local laws.

Reasonable Accommodations

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