Interdisciplinary General Engineer/Physical Scientist (Power Up Program Internship)
What you'd do
Are you ready to help shape America's energy future? The Department of Energy (DOE) is looking for motivated, forward-thinking individuals to join our Power Up Program. This internship gives you hands-on work experience, direct mentorship, and professional networking opportunities within the federal government.
Major duties
Join DOE's Power Up program and kickstart your federal career! This program is designed to offer exciting early-career opportunities for upcoming professionals ready to make an impact in the Federal government. As a participant, you will be paired with an on-the-job mentor whose guidance is tailored specifically to your career path-whether you are entering a technical specialty or an administrative/professional role. In this program, mentoring goes far beyond basic job training. Your mentor will serve as a trusted guide, helping you build confidence, develop professional skills, and learn how to navigate and thrive within a structured, mission-driven environment. As a Power Up Intern in the Office of Science, you will support our daily mission goals. Your responsibilities may will include: Research, analyze, interpret, evaluate, and carry out difficult but conventional scientific and/or engineering assignments in support of DOE programs/projects. Conduct preliminary scientific and/or engineering analyses to assist higher graded scientists and engineers in accomplishing work on large and complicated projects. Work with other scientists and/or engineers to identify and interpret a variety of factors, situations, and conditions to discern interrelationships among different scientific and/or engineering methods, processes and activities. Provide input into, and prepare, recurring technical reports to inform stakeholders of status of projects issues that may impact program/project objectives and goals. There are various offices that will be hiring from this vacancy announcement and they include: Oak Ridge National Laboratory Site Office - The primary mission is to deliver scientific discoveries and technical breakthroughs needed to realize solutions in energy and national security and provide economic benefit to the nation. Thomas Jefferson Site Office - The primary mission centers on advancing breakthrough research in nuclear physics while executing a strategic transition from a single-purpose laboratory into a cutting-edge, multi-purpose national research institution. Berkeley Site Office - The primary mission is to manage and administer DOE's performance-based contract with the University of California for the management and operation of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory to deliver the remarkable discoveries and scientific tools that transform our understanding of energy and matter and advance the national, economic, and energy security of the United States.
What you need to qualify
**Please note these series do have Basic Education Requirements that MUST be met and are listed in the Education section of the vacancy announcement. There is one for the 0801 series and one for the 1301 series.** You must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date (08/28/2026) of this announcement. For the GS-09: You must have one year of specialized experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GS-07 grade level in the Federal Service. Specialized experience for this position at the GS-9 includes: Conducting laboratory experiments, field tests, or site walks to collect physical data, monitor equipment, and analyze scientific/engineering metrics (such as design plans, environmental data, or lab samples).; AND Reviewing engineering or scientific technical documents, reports, and procedures under the guidance of senior staff to identify discrepancies, safety hazards, or compliance issues. OR YOU MAY QUALIFY FOR THE GS-9 BASED ON EDUCATION: 2 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree. Graduate education must provide the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform in the position. Please see the information under Education. OR YOU MAY QUALIFY FOR THE GS-9 BASED ON COMBINATION OF EDUCATION/EXPERIENCE: If you have some qualifying education and some qualifying experience, but don't fully meet either requirement on its own, you may be able to combine them. Only graduate education in excess of one year (18 semester hours or equivalent) can be used in this calculation. Experience must be reflected in your resume, and transcripts are required. Divide your qualifying graduate semester hours beyond the first 18 by 18. That gives you your education percentage. Divide your months of qualifying experience by 12. That gives you your experience percentage. Add the two together. If the total is 100% or more, you qualify. Experience may include paid or unpaid work, including internships, volunteer service, student leadership, military service, apprenticeships, or other relevant activities. Resumes must clearly describe duties, dates, and hours worked per week. Note about Graduate Education: One academic year of graduate education is considered to be the number of credits hours your graduate school has determined to represent one academic year of full-time study. Such study may have been performed on a full-time or part-time basis. If you cannot obtain your graduate school's definition of one year of graduate study, 18 semester hours (or 27 quarter hours) should be considered as satisfying the requirement for one year of full-time graduate study. Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications; applicants' resumes and supporting documentation should only reflect education received from schools accredited by such institutions. Applicants can verify accreditation at the following website: https://ope.ed.gov/dapip/#/home.If a relevant course is not clearly qualifying (e.g., special topic, seminar, research, thesis, obscure or misleading course title, etc.), please submit an official course syllabus and/or detailed course description from the university/college for that particular course to ensure you are properly evaluated. Provide all relevant transcripts, not just your most recent one. Special Instructions for Foreign Education: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet Minimum Qualifications, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program, or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. Failure to provide such documentation with your application will result in lost consideration. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.
Before you apply
Federal applications are different: your resume should be 3–5 pages and mirror the language of this announcement. Read our federal resume guide first — it's the #1 reason qualified people get screened out.
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