Hardware Thermal Simulation Engineer Intern - Hardware Thermal & Structural

About Us

Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies is a joint venture between two industry leaders with a clear vision for automotive’s next chapter. From operating systems to zonal controllers to cloud and connectivity solutions, we’re addressing the challenges of electric vehicles through technology that will set the standards for software-defined vehicles around the world.

The road to the future is uncharted. By combining our expertise across connectivity, AI, security and more, we’ll map a new way forward. Working together, we’ll create a future that’s more connected, more intelligent, more sustainable for everyone.

Candidates should be available from January 11, 2027 to August 13, 2027.

Role Summary

As a Thermal Simulation Intern on the Hardware Thermal & Structural team, you'll work on a real project that supports the cooling and packaging of electronics in next-generation vehicles. You'll be paired with an experienced engineer and gain hands-on exposure to how thermal simulation drives hardware design decisions in automotive electronics.

Responsibilities

• Build and run thermal simulations (CFD and conduction models) to evaluate cooling performance of vehicle electronic hardware.

• Support the development of electronics cooling and packaging concepts, such as heat sinks, thermal interface materials, and enclosure layouts.

• Explore design trade-offs that reduce mass, cost, and material usage while meeting thermal targets.

• Help analyze thermal stack-ups and material choices, and summarize findings as clear recommendations for design engineers.

• Support thermal reliability assessments by working with mission profile data and IC package temperature limits.

• Automate repetitive analysis and post-processing tasks using scripting..

• Collaborate with engineers across mechanical, electrical, and reliability teams..

• Document your methods, results, and learnings, and present them to the team at the end of the internship

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications:

• Currently pursuing a Bachelor's, Master's, or Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering, Thermal Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related field.

• Coursework or project experience in heat transfer and fluid mechanics.

• Familiarity with numerical simulation softwares.

• Ability to use AI tools such as Claude/Gemini to write and debug scripts, automate analysis and post-processing, and speed up learning, with the judgment to verify AI-generated output against engineering fundamentals.

• Must be located in Champaign, IL and able to work out of our office in the Research Park.

Preferred Qualifications

• Hands-on experience with a CFD or thermal simulation tool such as Flotherm, Ansys Icepak, Star-CCM+, Fluent, or similar (coursework, research, or student team projects count).

• Exposure to electronics cooling concepts, such as heat sinks, fans, thermal interface materials, or IC package thermal behavior..

• Experience with lab measurement techniques (thermocouples, IR imaging, flow measurement) from coursework or research.

• Interest in reliability, failure analysis, or validation methods.

• Research, publications, or thesis work in thermal management, heat transfer, or a related area

Total Rewards

We build the exceptional — and we believe the people doing that work should be rewarded accordingly. In addition to a competitive base salary, full-time positions may be is eligible to participate in our annual company performance bonus program.

Payments are discretionary and not guaranteed; actual amounts depend on company results and the terms of the plan in effect, and require active employment at the time of payout. This role is also eligible for equity in the form of Restricted Stock Units (RSUs), subject to board approval and the terms of our equity incentive plans, including applicable vesting requirements.

In addition to our compensation programs, we invest in our people with a comprehensive benefits package designed to support the health, wellbeing, and financial future for full-time employees — including health coverage, retirement savings, time off, and family planning programs. Offerings vary by country. Learn more about our global benefit programs.

External candidates can apply for this role through the Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies careers site (https://rivianvw.tech/#careers). If you are a current employee, please apply through our internal job board.

Equal Opportunity

Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information or characteristics, physical or mental disability, marital/domestic partner status, age, military/veteran status, medical condition, or any other characteristic protected by law. We are also committed to ensuring compliance with all applicable fair employment practice laws regarding citizenship and immigration status.

Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies is committed to ensuring that our hiring process is accessible for persons with disabilities. If you have a disability or limitation, such as those covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act, that requires accommodations to assist you in the search and application process, please email us at [email protected].

Candidate Data Privacy

Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies” may collect, use and disclose your personal information or personal data (within the meaning of the applicable data protection laws) when you apply for employment and/or participate in our recruitment processes (“Candidate Personal Data”). This data includes contact, demographic, communications, educational, professional, employment, social media/website, network/device, recruiting system usage/interaction, security and preference information. Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies may use your Candidate Personal Data for the purposes of (i) tracking interactions with our recruiting system; (ii) carrying out, analyzing and improving our application and recruitment process, including assessing you and your application and conducting employment, background and reference checks; (iii) establishing an employment relationship or entering into an employment contract with you; (iv) complying with our legal, regulatory and corporate governance obligations; (v) record keeping; (vi) ensuring network and information security and preventing fraud; and (vii) as otherwise required or permitted by applicable law.

Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies may share your Candidate Personal Data with (i) internal personnel who have a need to know such information in order to perform their duties, including individuals on our People Team, Finance, Legal, and the team(s) with the position(s) for which you are applying; (ii) Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies affiliates; and (iii) Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies’ service providers, including providers of background checks, staffing services, and cloud services.

Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies may transfer or store internationally your Candidate Personal Data, including to or in the United States, Canada, and the European Union and in the cloud, and this data may be subject to the laws and accessible to the courts, law enforcement and national security authorities of such jurisdictions.

If you provide a mobile telephone number as part of your application or during the recruitment process, Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies may use that number to contact you via SMS text message for recruitment-related purposes, including scheduling, logistics, and status updates. Message and data rates may apply. You may opt out of SMS communications at any time by replying STOP to any text message you receive from us. Consent to receive SMS messages is not a condition of applying for or being considered for employment.

Please see our Candidate Data Privacy Notice (English)and Candidate Data Privacy Notice (Serbian) for more information.

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Please note this job posting represents an open, active vacancy. Additionally, we are not currently accepting applications from third party application services.