The Ray Green Technology Internship

All applications will be due by midnight on Monday, January 27, 2025.

Faculty Letters of Recommendation are due Monday, February 3, 2025.

APPLY HERE: The Ray Green Technology Internship application
*NASA Media Release form – download here

Goals of the Program
The Ray Green Technology Internship is designed to increase the number of highly trained scientists and engineers and enable undergraduate students to conduct NASA-related research in cooperation with The Ray organization.

Awards
Intnership funding awarded by the SC Space Grant Consortium will be administered as a stipend through your institution’s Grants and Sponsored Programs Offices. Indirect charges (IDCs) are NOT ALLOWED on any SC Space Grant student awards. See the table above for your Campus Director. The full internship stipend amount is $7,500. You must perform 400 hours, or more, on the research project.

New Requirement for ALL student awardees for 2022/2023:
We are now requiring that you participate in at least one Outreach/Public Engagement activity event during your award period. SC Space Grant participates in many events each year, and you may join us at any time. Past events include the Charleston STEM festival, Camp Happy Days Summer camp, and the NASA STEM Expo. You may work with our main office or your campus director to locate an event of your choosing. These events will provide you with a great opportunity to share your enthusiasm for NASA and for STEM with the general public.
Please contact the main SC Space Grant office and your SC Space Grant campus director for information regarding upcoming outreach events in your area.

About the Internship
The student will support and work directly with The Ray, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charity and highway test bed, located on Georgia’s I-85 between LaGrange and the Alabama state line. It begins with an 18-mile stretch of interstate named in memory of Ray C. Anderson (1934-2011), a Georgia native recognized a leader in green business when he challenged his company, Interface Inc., to pursue a zero environmental footprint. The Ray Highway continues that legacy by paving the way for a zero carbon, zero waste, zero death highway system to build a safer and more prosperous future for all.
The Ray partners with transportation agencies throughout the Nation to develop, deploy and scale the innovative technologies to achieve its mission. This internship will support one or more of the following types of projects:

  • Renewable energy development
  • Microgrids
  • Electric vehicle charging infrastructure, both wired and wireless
  • Hydrogen infrastructure
  • Connected vehicle infrastructure

The projects will serve not only South Carolina, but also benefit the nation and the world. Many of these are related to the research and spin-offs NASA is conducting in resiliency and sustainability both during space flight and terrestrially.
While this internship will be mostly virtual, there will be opportunities to meet in person with The Ray researchers and partners within SC Space Grant Consortium.

Application Requirements

  • Resume
  • Education Information to include unofficial transcripts
  • Research Term (Academic Year or Summer)
  • Description of why you are interested in this internship (no more than 2 pages-references not included in page count)
      • Define sustainability
      • Relevance to NASA
      • How information and experience gained from this internship may contribute to SC energy needs
  • Project Advisor
  • Essay (500 words or less)
    • Past activities
    • Current Interests
    • Future Plans
  • 1 letter of recommendation, which MUST be from a faculty member at your home institution.

Faculty Letters of Recommendation are due Monday, February 5, 2024.

Formatting Guidelines:

  • Must be single-spaced, in English, use a font of at least 12 point (no more than ~15 characters per inch horizontally and 5.5 lines per inch vertically)
    • Must use standard 1” margins on all sides
    • 10 mb file size max for each proposal, must be an unlocked and searchable pdf file

Selection
The awards are determined by the South Carolina Space Grant Consortium Director, the Space Grant Campus Directors and a representative from the Ray. Selection for the awards are based on:

  1. the academic qualifications of the applicant
  2. two letters of recommendation
  3. description of past activities, current interests, and future plans concerning a space science or aerospace-related field
  4. faculty sponsorship
  5. a proposal including its relevance to NASA’s mission

Eligibility
Students must:

  • Be a citizen of the United States (see U.S. citizenship requirements here).
  • Attend a consortium member institution or educational partner
  • Have sponsorship from a faculty advisor
  • Be a rising sophomore, junior or senior
  • Have an interest in aerospace and space-related studies. Areas of interest include, but are not limited to, the basic sciences, science education, astronomy, planetary science, environmental studies, and engineering.

Equal Opportunity
Applicants will not be denied consideration on grounds of race, creed, color, age, sex, or handicap. We encourage women and minorities to apply.

Reporting Requirements

  • SC Space Grant Awardees are required to submit a final report of their project and outreach activities at the end of the academic year.
  • SC Space Grant Awardees are required to present their work at a research symposium or conference.
  • If selected to participate in this program you agree to participate in the South Carolina Space Grant Longitudinal Tracking program that is designed to monitor student progress from award through first employment.

Obligation to the Government
While students who receive support through the National Space Grant Program do not incur any formal obligations to the government of the United States, the objectives of the program clearly will be best served if graduates from the program pursue further study or careers in science, technology, engineering, and support areas. *As required by NASA, all awardees will be tracked via email through their first year of employment.
For more information, please contact: Ms. Tara B. Scozzaro, MPA Program Manager
phone: 843.953.5463 | email: scozzarot@cofc.edu