Nuclear Engineering Intern/Co-op

Forge Atomics

Humanity faces two critical challenges: securing reliable energy and aggressively lowering our environmental impact. At Forge, we believe nuclear fission is the key to solving both at once. Today Forge is developing the technology to rapidly scale the deployment of nuclear fission.

Nuclear Engineering Internship/Co-op

As a nuclear engineering intern at Forge, you'll contribute directly to the nuclear design and safety analysis of our first reactor, Ember — core design and fuel cycle, reactivity control, and radiation release and dose analysis. You'll work inside our simulation and analysis toolchain alongside the engineers carrying the design from today's working models toward licensing and first criticality, and your analyses will feed real design decisions. Internship and co-op positions are available for the Summer 2027 term.

Responsibilities

• Own a well-scoped nuclear analysis end-to-end — criticality, depletion, reactivity coefficients, shielding — with the mentorship of the engineer responsible for that area

• Run and extend reactor physics simulations supporting core design, fuel cycle, and reactivity control studies

• Support radiation shielding and release analysis against regulatory limits

• Build and improve the analysis tools and automation that let a small team move at unprecedented speed

• Collaborate daily with fluids, structures, components, and manufacturing engineers to keep the design system-optimized and manufacturable

Basic Qualifications

• Must be enrolled in a bachelor's degree program in an engineering, physics or math discipline by the start of employment

• 3+ months of applied engineering experience (internships and project team experience (i.e. FSAE, Rocketry, Cube Sat, Solar Car) are strongly preferred)

• Must be able to comply with U.S. Department of Energy export control regulations governing access to nuclear technology (10 CFR Part 810). U.S. citizenship is not required: Forge can generally host citizens of generally authorized countries (including Canada, the U.K., E.U. member states, Japan, and South Korea), and supports J-1 exchange visitor sponsorship for international students

Preferred Skills and Experience

• GPA of 3.5 or above

• 12+ months experience of application of technical skills outside of the classroom. Prior internships and project team experience are strongly preferred. Exceptional personal projects or laboratory research can serve as substitutes.

• Ability to work well in an integrated collaborative team environment, including frequent interactions with technicians, other engineers, and managers

• Ability to work effectively in a dynamic professional setting with changing needs and requirements

• Coursework or research in reactor physics, radiation transport, thermal hydraulics, or health physics

• Experience with reactor physics or radiation transport codes (e.g. OpenMC, MCNP, Serpent) and scientific computing in Python

Additional Requirements

• Position will be based in the South Bay area of Los Angeles County and will require relocation if not already local. The position will be full-time in the office for the duration of the internship/co-op term.

• Ability to work extended hours and weekends as necessary

Compensation and Benefits

Pay range:

• Engineering Intern/Freshman/Sophomore: $28.00/hour

• Engineering Intern/Junior/Senior: $30.00/hour

Your actual level and hourly rate will be determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on the following considerations: job-related knowledge and skills, education, and experience.

Interns accrue paid sick leave pursuant to Company policy which satisfies or exceeds the accrual, carryover, and use requirements of the law, and receive access to various other perks.

Forge is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Forge is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

This position involves access to technology that is subject to U.S. export controls. Any job offer made will be contingent upon the applicant's capacity to serve in compliance with U.S. export controls.