Deadline Extended for NASA Langley Intern Program

October 14, 2013

The Langley Aerospace Research Student Scholars Program (LARSS) has had its own problems with the federal government shutdown.

Debbie Murray, the coordinator for this program at NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, announced that the deadline for applying for the LARSS spring session has been extended because of confusion about whether the shutdown has closed the application process.

"Given the circumstances with the current government shutdown, it is our belief that students assumed they could not apply. This is not the case," she wrote in a memo to institutions in the Virginia Space Grant Consortium, including Old Dominion University. The application deadline has been extended for two weeks until Oct. 31, 2013.

The LARSS spring session, which runs from Jan. 20 until May 2 of next year, is open to full-time college juniors, seniors and graduate students pursing degrees in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Applicants also must have a G.P.A. of at least 3.0 and be U.S. citizens. The program extends a special invitation to applicants who are female, under-represented minorities, students with disabilities, military veterans, first-generation college students and students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

Interns accepted into the program are paid and have the opportunity to work with Langley researchers on some of the nation's most important and challenging scientific and engineering projects.

Murray wrote that inquiries during the shutdown should be directed to her or program assistant Sarah Pauls at their private email addresses: debmurrayLARSS@gmail.com and sarahpaulsLARSS@gmail.com. A temporary phone line during the government shutdown is at 757-766-5210.

When the shutdown ends the phone numbers and email addresses at the LARSS website will be back in service.

Application forms are at www.nianet.org/larss.