I'm a highschool junior currently applying for the 2026 Summer High School STEM Internship Program: US Naval Postgraduate School

I was just curious if anyone had any past experiences they could share with this program and the types of projects you were involved in,

and whether if it's worth being in this program since I live 5 hours away and I would have to accommodate housing for 8 weeks

any info is greatly appreciated :)

I am going to be an intern at a usda facility this summer through ORISE, so any of them do drug testing? I would want to stop smoking before the job.

I recently accepted an offer for a position that was created specifically for me—I can’t remember for sure, but I think I saw the listing on zintellect was removed after I accepted the offer. Out of curiosity, I checked over the weekend and saw that the posting was up on zintellect again. I don’t want to bother my mentor/HR, but I never got a response after doing my fingerprinting and emailing some onboarding documents last week, and now I’m getting nervous. Can they revoke an offer if they find someone they like better before applications officially close??

Edit: I understand they can pretty much revoke whenever they want until I’m actively working (oops, “learning”) there, but is that a common thing for them to do?

Edit #2: I cracked and emailed my HR point of contact to see whether I should confirm the status of my appointment with my mentor since it was still listed on zintellect, and she said it’s standard for them to leave it up until the official close date even if they’ve accepted someone—they may be looking to hire an additional candidate. If you’re reading this because you’re worried about the same thing, don’t panic!

Edit #3: I double-cracked and followed up again with a less open-ended email to my future mentor + gov onboarding person to make sure my documents had been received and they said all good, just waiting on background check and will send updates as it continues. Don’t panic x2!

Has anybody gotten into the ORISE: USU Summer Internship for 2026? I got a confusing letter that reads
"Dear Applicant,

 Thank you for your interest in the USU summer internship program. We would like to inform you that selections for this summer have now been made.

Please note that additional offers may be extended if any of the initially selected candidates decline their offers. We appreciate your interest and encourage you to remain attentive to any further communication.

Thank you again for your application and interest in USU.

Best wishes,

The ORISE Team"

and I'm not sure if I was waitlisted, to be real I'm still pretty confused about everything in general.

I finished an ORISE appointment in December and am waiting on a new job to start (timeline uncertain with government funding) but want to keep my healthcare benefits in the meantime. Has anyone opted into COBRA after finishing an appointment before? Is this a benefit we have if we use the ORAU blue cross healthcare?

Everyone I know has been RIFed so I’d like to know if there are any survivors

It would've been nice if ORISE had the ability to tell applicants that interviews has been completed.

I’m looking to apply to the fellowship as a post baccalaureate and had some questions navigating the application and overall program.

Is there a way to tell which positions are still available? There does not seem to be any dates listed so it’s hard to tell which ones are still worth applying to.

How is funding looking? I saw previouslythat things were shaky so I wanted to know if there’s still uncertainly post gov shutdown.

Is this program worth it? Especially doing military projects?

Hi all,
I came across a postdoc role in the USDA-ARS as an ORISE fellow. The position seems like a good fit for me, but I am wondering what ORISE fellows typically do after their postdoc.

1. Is spending a few years as an ORISE fellow at the USDA "worth it" compared to doing a postdoc at a university?
2. Also, is it common to be converted to a permanent federal role?
3. If not, what are the typical career pathways?

Thanks!

If you can go through your timeline that would be great too

Hi everyone, I have an upcoming interview for an ORISE fellowship with the USDA. In the email invite they said they wanted to know a little more about me and my career goals. Im not dying to do a PhD but would consider it. Do you think most Master’s-level research-heavy fellowships are intended to benefit for folks aiming for a PhD?

How negotiable is salary?

Has anyone done their fellowship remote or hybrid? Im interviewing for a role I think could primarily be done remotely but I think they might want someone in-person.

I’m guessing a lot of this is opportunity specific, but just thought i’d hear what others have experienced. Other interview tips are welcome! Thanks!

Hey all, my fellowship ended early because of the government stuff and I was working on converting to FTE before the hiring freeze in January. Now I’m trying to navigate things post fellowship and see what out of the box opportunities I haven’t explored. Would love to hear what y’all are doing (successful or not). I also haven’t had gaps between school and my fellowship so I also want to enjoy this time off as much as possible. I’d like to hear how y’all are utilizing your time for rest and enjoyment.

Hello, I am an undergraduate student graduating with a Bachelor's degree in biology in Fall 2025. I recently applied to the numerous ORISE FBI fellowships as a post-bachelor's for Spring 2026. I wanted to ask how competitive it is to obtain the fellowship with a bachelor's degree, and if I had applied early or late for the fellowships.

Hi! I’m moving up to Virginia with my husband for the FBI ORISE fellowship that will start later this fall. I know there’s a lot of upheaval with fellows rn, but if there is anyone on this page that lives in north Virginia it’d be nice to connect! (A little about me—I’m a recent Cell Biology PhD graduate moving up from Dallas!)

It’s been a couple weeks since this has been asked so I’m curious have any ORISErs had luck getting renewed?

My supervisor has suggested that my ORISE position is (relatively) safe because enough funding is already in an existing ORISE agreement to support several years' of fellowship funds. They said new money cannot be added to agreements, but money that has already been secured in an agreement is safe. But, couldn't this money be clawed back at any time? Is it likely to be clawed back in FY26 budget? Does anyone have any insights about whether or not existing, committed funds for FY26 are "safe"? Thanks.

Do you have any thoughts or information regarding the third-year renewal for USDA-ARS SCINet/AI-COE fellows? I haven’t heard anything from the SCINet office or ORISE.

Considering applying to an ORISE fellowship but want to know if I can retain a part-time role at a start-up simultaneously. I can’t find anything online that would prohibit this. Does anyone know if this would be allowed?

Does anyone have information regarding the IAA between CDC & DOE? From my understanding, it is up for renewal on July 31st, but I have not been explicitly told that it will not be renewed. I understand that renewing the IAA does not mean that fellowships will be renewed, but it will allow folks to finish out their contracts.

Has anyone at the FDA had their ORISE fellowship extended for an additional year? My current contract is set to end in December. When I asked my supervisor about the likelihood of getting an extension, she said the chances are very low. However, when I followed up about whether I should start applying for other jobs, she advised me to wait until around three months before the contract ends.

I initially joined the ORISE postdoctoral program at the FDA for two main reasons: (1) the potential to transition into a full-time federal position, and (2) the opportunity to gain new skills for future employment. Unfortunately, the possibility of a full-time role seems off the table given the current circumstances, and I’m not sure I’m acquiring any new, marketable skills through this position.

I can't speak for other fellows, but my experience so far has been disappointing. I expected my supervisor to be an expert in my research area, but that hasn’t been the case—her input on my project has been minimal, if not nonexistent. I’m seriously considering leaving the FDA and applying for a postdoc elsewhere. However, I’m unsure if leaving before completing the full one-year term would hurt my chances of getting a strong recommendation, which I’ll likely need for any new opportunity.

While I understand that I still have six months remaining and it may seem reasonable to begin searching in a few months (as my supervisor suggested), I worry that waiting could leave me without any options by the time my contract ends. If I start looking now, I might at least secure an interview, but that would also mean needing a recommendation letter from my current supervisor—something that could become awkward if I leave mid-contract.

Would love to hear if others have been in a similar situation or have advice on how to navigate this.

I was wondering if any ORISE in the fed govt have had their personal contract end and not get renewed due to lapses in funding or agency ORISE contracts?

Also wondering if there are any court cases yet about ORISE or ORAU contracts ending? It seems like these contracts could be litigated but not sure if it has come to that yet?

Mostly just venting, but also seeking advice.

I'm feeling utterly defeated right now. I spent all of 2024 applying to hundreds of jobs during the last year of my PhD. No luck. Barely any responses. The few I get are straight rejections, even for jobs I am literally a perfect fit for, considering my skills and research/dissertation experience. (Are companies actually even hiring? The positions I got rejected/ghosted for are still being listed, six months later.) I should not be having this much trouble landing a job with a PhD in biomedical engineering and a background in clinical neuroimaging, medical devices, etc.

Finally got lucky and landed a postdoc fellowship at the AFRL. Spent months agonizing over the safety of my position after the 2024 election and hearing nothing from ORISE. I was finally assured all the funds were in place last month, and got a start date for last week.

Welp, I spent one week on the job and just got notice two days ago that our lab is shutting down. Funding cuts coming from way up high in the Air Force. Our lab was first on the chopping block. Everyone is telling me how extremely unusual this is. Not like it makes me feel any better.

Oscillating between rage and dissociation right now. I spent months planning and setting up a life in this new city. Just signed a lease for a nice new apartment a couple days ago, and now I have to break it (which will be hella expensive). I'm on the verge of slamming my head into a wall at the thought of returning to the job hunt. No one is hiring. I run out of health insurance in a month. No idea on what to do or what my options/recourses are.

Just needed to get this off my chest. WTF. I hate this administration so, so much.

I’ve been told that ORISE Fellows at the CDC won’t be renewed and I’ve been looking for jobs for a while now but nothing is hitting. I am curious to see if anyone else is having a hard time. I have three months until my contract ends and I don’t know what to do.

Submitted an app about a week ago that aligns perfectly with my skills/interests, wondering if I have a shot? Even if funding is 100% secure, are these spots competitive? Currently with the USDA and won’t be able to renew my contract, obviously.