Developing the Next Generation of Weather Forecasters: The NCEP Student Internship Program

The National Weather Service’s National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) held the third year of its formal student internship program. While many students have interned at NCEP over the years, a formal summer program was developed to enhance the experience and professional development of the students and build a diverse, competent workforce. Students had the opportunity to learn firsthand about weather and climate modeling, the forecast process, impact based decision support, and product development at the NCEP Centers located in College Park, MD.

The 10 week summer internship program is targeted towards current undergraduate and graduate students to work in areas that will meet the future needs of the ever-broadening user community and address strategic climate-water-weather issues. Students are paired with a dedicated mentor and are involved in projects that will: 1) improve understanding of forecasting problems, 2) address critical aspects of operational model development, and 3) develop new data analysis techniques with usefulness in operational forecasting. Participants have the opportunity to attend scientific lectures and operational map discussions. They also spend significant time building career skills and knowledge applicable to professional development. This presentation will provide an overview of the program and discuss some best practices and lessons learned for building tomorrow’s STEM workforce.