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Research Fellowships

NSF Graduate Research Internship Program (GRIP) / Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP)

Application deadlines are managed by NSF. GRIP/GRFP Deadlines are May 6 and December 4

(Due to COVID-19) GRIP is On Hold Until Further Notice. NSF/GRFP INTERN Program is Still Active - Info on GRFP INTERN Below.

The National Science Foundation has created the Graduate Research Internship Program (GRIP)/Graduate Research Fellowships Program (GRFP) for graduate students to complete internships at federal agencies. The NSF and United States Environmental Protection Agency collaboration is designed to encourage, develop, and facilitate collaborative professional development and research opportunities for NSF Graduate Research Fellows (GRF). Here at EPA, GRIP/GRFP students can grow professionally with a rewarding research experience and receive mentoring from our researchers, all while focusing on the protection of human health and the environment.

Interested students should start by identifying an EPA GRIP/GRFP opportunity and contacting the lead researcher to discuss internship goals. The student may collaborate with the researcher to develop a project plan, per NSF Instructions (PDF)(5 pp, 607 K, April 16, 2018). The student will prepare his/her own GRIP/GRFP application to request supplemental funding from NSF. GRIP/GRFP is open only to NSF Graduate Fellows, recipients of the Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) award.  

  •  Learn more about the NSF application process and eligibility requirements.
    • All GRIP/GRFP awards are subject to the availability of funds, merit review, and acceptance by both the National Science Foundation and NSF's partner agencies (EPA).
    • A Fellow may submit one (1) application per partner agency and may apply to a maximum of two (2) partner agencies for each submission deadline. 
    • NSF awards GRIP/GRFP internship allowances to Fellows based on a twice-yearly competition.
  • Learn about EPA GRIP/GRFP opportunities under the research categories, listed below.
  • For more information, contact the EPA liaison. Please use the subject line EPA GRIP/GRFP.

EPA Graduate Research Internship Project (GRIP)/ Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) Descriptions

To peruse the EPA GRFP/GRIP Opportunities, please click on the research categories listed below. These projects may also be tailored to meet the goals of other internship programs that are offered through the National Science Foundation, such as GRFP INTERN.

EPA GRFP/GRIP Opportunities - Please note that some projects may not be available, therefore, contact the researcher listed to confirm their participation in EPA's GRFP/GRIP program. 

Please contact the EPA Project Manager or EPA Project Lead/Mentor with any questions you may have.

 
  • Air Research

    Topic: International Household Energy Research
    The student will have the opportunity to work with a team of researchers in a leading laboratory in partnership with a worldwide initiative to address global health and environmental problems associated with household energy.  The student will learn about laboratory evaluation of air pollutant emissions, data analysis, and publication of results.  Experience with VBA or other programming language would be a plus.

    Topic: Development of Energy-Water Infrastructure Tools to Aid Local, State, and Regional Decision Making
    EPA’s National Risk Management Research Laboratory is developing analytical decision support tools for local, state and regional decision-makers faced with energy and water infrastructure planning problems.

    Topic: Evaluation of Online Measurement Techniques for Volatile Organic Compounds
    This opportunity is located in US EPA Office of Research and Development in Research Triangle Park, NC and involves the testing of advanced measurement technologies for volatile organic compounds in air.

    Topic: Combining Measurements and Modeling to Better Understand Ammonia Air-Surface Exchange Processes
    The objective of this project is to characterize the sensitivity of EPA’s bi-directional ammonia flux model to inputs of meteorology, air concentrations and biogeochemistry, focusing on the role of soil and vegetation compensation points.

    Topic: Performance Evaluation of Low-Cost Air Quality Sensors
    The objective of this opportunity is to evaluate the performance of a low-cost sensor for ambient air quality measurement.

    Topic: Fundamental UV/IR Reference Spectra Analysis and Evaluation
    The reference spectra used for pollutant emissions quantitation by typical spectral absorption analyzers are based on empirical derivation from gas standards where possible. However, in the absence of quality reference gas standards, they are many pollutants reliant on theoretical spectra (e.g., HITRAN, PNNL, etc) generated by computational means based on multiple spectroscopic parameters. The quantitative quality and appropriateness of these modeled spectra in the absence of empirical confirmation is an uncertainty for EPA relating to the quality of regulatory emissions measurements.

    Topic: Particulate Matter and Black Carbon Emissions Inventories and Measurement Techniques
    The intern would have the opportunity to work with EPA Office of Research and Development (ORD) researchers in Research Triangle Park, NC to complete a literature review of black carbon emissions in the Arctic Region with particular emphasis on residential heating. The intern would also have the opportunity to learn about black carbon measurements and work hands-on in the laboratory with source emissions.

  • Environmental Changes Research

    Topic: Black Carbon Emissions from Residential Combustion in Arctic Nations 
    The Arctic Council Expert Group on Black Carbon and Methane has identified emissions from residential biomass combustion as a significant uncertainty in the global BC inventory for Arctic Nations. This sector accounts for approximately 11 percent of BC emissions from Arctic States.

  • Ecosystems Research

    Topic: Research on the Role of Microplastics at the Interface of Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecosystems
    We seek a candidate interested in assessing toxicity of microplatics at the terrestrial-aquatic interface. The student project will involve working with a team to develop methods for extracting and characterizing microplastics from environmental media. The student will develop methods and quantify the effects of microplastics on terrestrial and/or aquatic organisms using mesocosm and molecular techniques.

    Topic: Understanding Critical Rare Earth Metals Recovery & Economics
    The purpose of this project is to further science and engineering by achieving a higher level of understanding of Critical Rare Earth Metal (CREM) recovery processes from coal and coal by-products and wastewater sludge, including the engineering, scientific and economic feasibility designs for site-specific pilot projects, and the identification of potential environmental impacts associated with the recovery of CREM from the selected waste streams.

    Topic: Combining Measurements and Modeling to Better Understand Ammonia Air-Surface Exchange Processes
    The objective of this project is to characterize the sensitivity of EPA’s bi-directional ammonia flux model to inputs of meteorology, air concentrations and biogeochemistry, focusing on the role of soil and vegetation compensation points.

    Topic: Quantifying the Consequences of Spatio-temporal Dynamics of Mangroves Forests in the Provision of Ecosystem Goods and Services
    Mangrove forests provide important ecosystem goods and services to the world’s dense coastal population and support important functions of the biosphere. The forests are under threat from both natural (e.g. typhoons, sea-level rise) and anthropogenic forces (rapid economic development, population growth). The loss of these ecosystems can lead to the loss of critical functions of mangroves including coastal protection, carbon sequestration and biodiversity—thus threatening the resiliency and vitality of coastal social-ecological systems. However, our scientific understanding is limited in regards to the rates, patterns and causes of changes to mangrove forest cover and their impact in providing ecosystem goods and services. The proposed research aims to examine dynamics of mangrove forests and associated change in ecosystem good and services of from 1985 to present.

  • Health Research

    Topic: Investigating How the Microbiome Interacts With Environmental Chemicals in Zebrafish
    This internship will use an innovative experimental system comprised of colonized and microbe-free zebrafish to learn how microbial colonization status affects the toxicity of environmental chemicals.

    Topic: Remote Sensing and Mapping of Urban Environments
    This project is part of a larger remote sensing effort for high-resolution land cover mapping and subsequent analysis of communities for sustainability and human and ecosystem health. It builds on EPA EnviroAtlas Meter-scale Urban Land Cover (MULC) data (https://enviroatlas.epa.gov/enviroatlas/DataFactSheets/pdf/Supplemental/EnviroAtlasCommunityLand cover.pdf). The emphasis will be on developing efficient and repeatable workflows for mapping large areas at high spatial resolution. Knowledge of remote sensing, image classification and GIS is required. 

    Topic:  Using Zebrafish to Detect Developmentally Neurotoxic Chemicals Research
    This internship will use a cutting-edge laboratory model, the zebrafish, to assess the variables that affect zebrafish larval behavior and develop new tests that assess nervous system function.

  • Safer Chemicals Research

    Topic: Development and Application of Methods for Assessing Immunocompentence in Bees
    Diminished immunity may be a central factor in bee population declines.  The goal of this project is to evaluate the effects of pesticide exposure on immunocompetence across species of bees.

    Topic: Implications of Gut Content Purging upon Chemical Residues in Lumbriculus variegatus for Highly Hydrophobic Chemicals
    EPA’s sediment bioaccumulation test with Lumbriculus variegatus is routinely performed on sediments from contaminated sites.  Recent research results suggest biphasic elimination kinetics for highly hydrophobic chemicals (chemicals with log KOW > 9.0).  This research opportunity will perform studies to understand the causes of the biphasic elimination kinetics for these chemicals.  The research results will be submitted to peer-review journal for publication. 

    Topic: Using Gene Expression to Predict Toxicity Caused by Environmental Chemicals
    This internship will use cutting-edge laboratory and computational techniques to link chemical-induced gene expression changes generated in different cell models to predictions of adverse effects in animals and humans.

    Topic: Linking Short-term Responses to Ecologically-relevant Outcomes
    Opportunity to participate in the conduct of collaborative integrative lab, field and modeling efforts to characterize molecular-to-organismal level responses and make quantitative testable predictions of population-level outcomes from exposures to chemicals and other stressors.

    Topic: Gas- and/or Liquid Chromatography- High Resolution Mass Spectrometry
    There is a need to develop new methods and approaches that can generate exposure data on the growing number of chemicals in commercial use. CCTE’s Chemical Characterization and Exposure Division is developing suspect screening and non-targeted analysis (NTA) methods to gather xenobiotic data in a variety of environmental and biological media to understand the totality of lifetime exposures.

    Topic: Identifying Neurophysiological Signatures of Neurotoxicant Action
    This project will utilize data from microelectrode array recordings of neural networks and ToxCast endpoints to identify signatures acute and developmental neurotoxicity. It will improve prediction of these important endpoints by identifying neurophysiological and biochemical

  • Sustainable and Healthy Communities Research

    Topic: Assessing Health Risks Related to Waste Disposal Sites Impacting Alaska Tribes
    The management and disposal of solid waste is one of the greatest challenges for many remote Tribes. Due to insufficient geological conditions, remote location, inability to export, and/or high waste processing costs, proper waste disposal to minimize risk to resident populations is extremely difficult. These described waste conditions are common for Alaska Tribes. Roughly three-quarters of Alaskan Village disposal sites are within one mile of homes and up to 30 percent are within one-quarter mile of homes. Most Alaska Tribes rely on their traditional way of life, for example, gathering water from traditional sources. Health impacts can result from inhalation and ingestion exposures to contaminated air and drinking water, as well as from spread of disease via insects, birds, and other vectors.

    Topic: Assessing soil responses in recently restored coastal salt marshes
    Ongoing restoration projects in Rhode Island are testing different methods to build coastal marsh resistance and resilience. In this project, the student will examine the soil responses to hydrological restoration (i.e., runnel creation) and thin layer placement of dredged materials to coastal marshes. Restored marshes are hypothesized to have increased resistance to erosion and improved resilience to flooding events and storm surges. Soil parameters of pH, bulk density, moisture, salinity, oxidation-reduction status, and shear strength between reference marshes and restored sites will help predict trajectories of change in the coastal areas. The restoration monitoring will be carried out through partnerships and engagement with community, state, and federal groups.

    Topic: Flood Induced Contaminants Fate and Transport and Exposures Risk in Vulnerable Communities
    Recent published studies have shown that high-flow events can induce undesired transport of contaminated sediments into surrounding areas (e.g., rivers, water reservoirs, private wells, etc.) and result in elevated levels of contaminants in the vicinity of Superfund sites. This research opportunity takes a system approach to focus on environmental fate/transport of regulated or emerging contaminants due to flood (drought) and its near-field exposures.  The research results can be submitted for peer-review publications.  The results could be applied to contaminant clean-up guidelines for vulnerable communities.

  • Water Research

    Topic: Cyanobacteria Identification using flow imaging cytometry
    Develop machine learning methods to streamline cyanobacteria identification using traditional microscopy, fluorescent microscopy, and imaging cytometry instrument in order to investigate source of cylindrospermopsin toxin production in state lakes.

    Topic: Optimizing Agricultural Nitrogen Management: Conveying the Nitrogen Cascade to Stakeholders
    Develop an approach to communicate fertilizer optimization to the farm community, balancing agronomic production, greenhouse gas emissions and water quality. 

    Topic: Research and Technology Transfer on Groundwater Quality and Remediation  
    Opportunities to work with a team of scientists at the EPA ORD Division focused on groundwater quality and contaminated groundwater remediation. 

    Topic: Data Analysis of Sequences and qPCR for Microbial Communities during Algal Blooms
    2 training opportunities are open to highly microbial-research-motivated students to conduct experiments and data/modeling analysis, explore novel genes, and metabolic pathways, validate resultant findings using qPCR/RT-qPCR and summarize the findings.

    Topic: Satellite Water Quality Monitoring
    Flexible opportunity to focus on anything from developing short science videos to research related to using satellites for water quality monitoring supporting the environmental management and public use of lakes, reservoirs and estuaries. Please see the Cyanobacteria Assessment Network (CyAN) Project and video for more information.

    Topic: Use Multidisciplinary Science to Develop Coral Reef Biocriteria Protective of Biological Communities & Final Ecosystem Goods & Services
    Work with a dynamic scientific team to develop bioindicators and approaches to assess the condition of coral reef ecosystems. Research collaborations provide professional opportunities in a regulatory governmental lab setting.

    Topic: Drivers and Impacts of Coastal Acidification in Pacific Northwest Estuaries
    The intern selected for this position would develop a project focused on the role of eutrophication in influencing coastal acidification and the impact of this acidification on estuarine ecosystems.

  • Other Research Areas

    Topic: Assessing the Benefits of the Natural Environment to Individual Well-being
    This internship involves analyzing survey data and measures of ecosystem services to evaluate the association between the natural environment and individual well-being, along with factors including demographics and socio-cultural characteristics that influence that association. EPA is particularly interested in identifying the benefits or salutogenic influence of the natural environment.

    Topic: Environmental Geophysics Research and Development
    Environmental geophysics opportunities are offered in web site content development, model development and testing, laboratory geophysical experimentation, and fieldwork involving applications of geophysical methods to subsurface processes, site characterization, contaminant fate and transport, and remediation monitoring.

Our commitment 
EPA stays committed to STEM education and the development of future environmental workforce. Learn more about other EPA STEM opportunities and the P3 Student Design Competition.