The SMP Summer Industry Experience program offers Mathematics, Physics, and Statistics students the chance to engage in a summer internship with one of SMP's industry partners.
Student interns will gain valuable industry insight and experience in an authentic work environment. In turn, host organisations tap into our pool of talented students and collaborate with them as they contribute to real-life projects during the internship.
The annual program runs for six to eight weeks between late November and mid-February.
Students
Eligibility
The program is open to undergraduate and postgraduate coursework students in Mathematics, Physics, and Statistics, noting the below additional criteria:
- If you are an undergraduate student, you must have completed a minimum of 16 units (one year of full-time study or equivalent) at the time of application.
- If you are a postgraduate student, you must have completed a minimum of 2 units (or equivalent) at the time of application.
- For the Summer 2024/25 program, you must be continuing your studies in Semester 1 of 2025.
Registering
If you meet the eligibility criteria, the next step is to register for the program. Your registration must be submitted via the University’s placement management system, InPlace in August 2024 (date forthcoming).
- You can access InPlace via your My.UQ dashboard, or through the My.UQ Manage My Program page.
- Click 'Staff and Students' on the homepage and log in using your student login details (same as My.UQ logins).
- Navigate to My Details and answer all questions in the sections 'SCIENCE - WIL Placements - Register' and ‘SMP Summer Industry Experience’.
Applications
If you meet the eligibility criteria and have registered for the program, you will be able to view available projects via InPlace from August 2024 (exact date to be confirmed).
To apply for a project, you must submit an application through InPlace and attach:
- your resume
- your studies report from SI-net, and
- a cover letter specific to the advertised project.
You can submit applications for up to five projects. Applications will close at the end of August 2024 (exact date forthcoming).
Selection Process
Applications are sent to our industry partners. Interviews with industry partners will take place during September with outcomes announced in the first week of October. If you are successful, you will commence your internship in late November/early December 2024 and finish in January/February 2025. The exact dates are negotiated with the host organisation. Interns will receive a stipend of $360 per week, paid at the end of each 4-week block.
Presentations
As a participant in the SMP Summer Industry Experience program, you will be expected to attend a showcase event in March 2025. At the showcase event you will give a short presentation on your internship experience (4-5 minutes) in which you will have the chance to reflect on the project that you undertook and at how the internship has contributed to your professional and personal development.
Enrolment
If you are interested in gaining course credit for the internship, you may be eligible to enrol in SCIE3050 Science Industry Placement over the summer semester. Email us for enquiries about your eligibility, the application process, or enrolment for credit.
Industry Partners
Interested in hosting an intern?
Submit a project for inclusion in the 2024-25 program by August 2024 (exact date forthcoming). For reference, read our 2023-24 program flyer.
If you have questions about the program, email us. You can also contact Dr Meagan Carney (Mathematics) or A/Prof Arkady Fedorov (Physics) to discuss your project.
Our partners
Read more about our industry partners.
What our interns say
"Despite beginning the internship with no knowledge of traffic modelling software or the mathematics underlying it, through the skills I have picked up during my degree and the guidance of my supervisor, I found myself right at home by the end of the program, regularly contributing to discussions and solving problems. Along with sharpening my problem-solving ability and opening my eyes to many new mathematical ideas and frameworks, I gained valuable experience working in the commercial sector, which can only be gained in programs like these." - Tapash Alister, intern at Veitch Lister Consulting.
"My 6-week summer internship with Vivienne Court Trading was a transformative experience that opened both doors and my eyes to an entirely new career path. My advice would be to not limit the breadth of your initial applications only to fields you’re already familiar with, as I have found that passion is derived from new experiences just as much as it drives them." - Michael Postan, intern at Vivienne Court Trading.
“I had an amazing supervisor who helped keep my project on track and gave me lots of advice about working as a data scientist in industry” - Peter Baldry, intern at Grabba.
"The working environment I went into was so welcoming, and the tasks were stimulating. I was encouraged to use new technology and received plenty of support from other staff. " - Olivia Ou, intern at Wildfire Sport & Trek.
"It was fantastic to find effective solutions to difficult problems which was very satisfying when those solutions have real-world implications. Seeing the potential of my degree has been a fantastic motivator" - Matthew Richards, intern at Veitch Lister Consulting.
"This internship allowed me to use my Maths degree to solve challenging problems with real-world applications, and I am very excited to continue to do this in my career" - Rosie Harris. View more from Rosie about her internship at SilverRail Technologies.
"It is safe to say that being involved in a summer internship was probably the best decision that I have ever made, and it led to probably the most interesting Summer I have ever had" - Jonathan Geddes. View more from Jonathan about his experience at RMPGlobal.
"You will come out of the experience brighter, more knowledgeable and equipped with skills that no tutorial nor lecture would be able to provide. Take the opportunity and apply; you never know what you can learn and what impact you will have" Thasmika Gokal. View more from Thasmika about interning with The McKinnon Group.
"Immediately at commencement of my internship with CSIRO, I was made to feel part of the team. Their collaborative culture made it easy to resource ideas and correct myself when astray, helping me learn and contribute the best I could" - Sam MacDonald. View more from Sam on about his internship experience at CSIRO.