Undergraduate Tech Intern - Electrical Engineering (Winter 2026-2027)

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory•Richland, WA

About The Position

This winter-semester undergraduate internship is with the Physical Detection Systems and Deployment Division in Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s National Security Directorate. The position is intended for a degree-seeking undergraduate and will start as soon as possible; it is not a summer 2027 internship. The work supports research prototypes, electronic subsystems, RF imaging, and electromagnetic actuator projects under technical guidance and mentorship. The intern will assist with laboratory setup, testing, data collection, documentation, and basic electronics or embedded-system tasks appropriate to their experience. Work may include prototyping, PCB and circuit activities, firmware or scripting tasks, sensor and actuator integration, and supervised characterization of electromagnetic actuators. Any observation or assistance involving high-voltage analog electronics must occur under direct supervision and established laboratory safety procedures. The role requires U.S. citizenship because it involves access to sensitive systems and information. Employees must also meet applicable project eligibility requirements and PNNL’s security and credentialing requirements. The position is not a Testing Designated Position. The listed hourly pay range is USD $17.13 to $27.02.

Requirements

High school diploma/GED or higher.
Degree-seeking undergraduate student enrolled at an accredited college or university.
Taking at least 6 credit hours and having an overall cumulative GPA of at least 2.5.
U.S. citizenship.
Ability to meet applicable eligibility requirements for work on assigned projects.

Nice To Haves

Currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, computer engineering, computer science, or a closely related technical field.
Completion of introductory coursework in programming, circuits, digital logic, embedded systems, electronics, controls, electromagnetics, or a related area.
Basic programming ability in at least one language, such as C, C++, or Python.
Interest in hands-on laboratory work, electronics, embedded systems, or hardware/software integration; prior professional experience is not required.
Ability to follow instructions and safety procedures, document work carefully, communicate questions and results, and collaborate with a technical team.

Responsibilities

Assist with assembling, wiring, testing, and troubleshooting research prototypes and electronic subsystems under technical guidance.
Support laboratory experiments for RF imaging and electromagnetic actuator projects by setting up equipment, following test procedures, collecting data, and recording results.
Help with introductory schematic, component-selection, PCB assembly, board bring-up, or circuit-testing tasks appropriate to the intern’s experience.
Contribute to small, well-defined firmware, FPGA, scripting, or data-analysis tasks with mentoring and code review.
Connect and test sensors, actuators, microcontrollers, development boards, GPIO, and interfaces such as SPI, I2C, or UART.
Assist with basic power-supply, DC-DC regulation, control-system, and hardware/software integration experiments.
Support electromagnetic actuator assembly and characterization, including supervised control tests, coil and impedance measurements, and comparison of experimental data with expected behavior.
Observe or assist with high-voltage analog electronics only under direct supervision and in accordance with laboratory safety procedures.
Maintain an engineering notebook; organize data and files; document test configurations; and share progress with mentors and the project team.
Participate in team discussions and ask questions to build understanding of multidisciplinary research and engineering practices.