Employer applications will open in December 2026 for the Summer 2027 Internships. Please check back!
The TIMESTEP Summer Tech Internship Program is a unique opportunity for small- to mid-sized companies to connect with talented U of A undergraduate students in the physical sciences. This competitive program provides employers with a vetted pool of diverse students who have worked in research teams, possess computing skills, and are ready to work alongside development and engineering teams.
Benefits to Employers
- Access to a high-quality, talented, and diverse pool of students with strong physics, math and computing backgrounds
- A chance to scout talent for extended internships or full-time positions in your organization
- An opportunity to explore a new project or direction
- Pathways to build or strengthen ties to U of A faculty working in space and technology sectors
- Intern stipends may be subsidized by the program for startups and small businesses, depending on available funds
Unique Components of the Program
- Matching of student interns with the employer’s needs
- Ongoing intern mentoring via TIMESTEP to support student success
- Employer and intern feedback via mid-program surveys allow for course correction when needed
- Pre-internship training for students in key skills, informed by internship job descriptions and end-of-program employer and intern surveys from previous years
Participation Requirements
- Provide a part-time (20 hrs/wk) technical work experience for a U of A student intern
- Runs 13 weeks, mid-May to mid-August
- Local to Tucson, or 100% remote internship if outside of Tucson, AZ
- Intern supervisor identified who has a degree or specific training relevant to the technical area in which the student will be working
Projects generally focus on, but aren’t limited to:
- Data analysis and data collection
- Software and/or hardware development
- Mechanical design and optimization of instrumentation or robotics
Detailed Employer Information:
Summer 2025 Program Report:
Employer Testimonials
KHM (Karsh Hagan Madden; previously Madden Media)
Participated in 2018-2026
4 Past Interns continued working with Madden Media full time.
“Working with TIMESTEP has allowed us to build and sustain a data analysis solution that processes several hundred billion rows of data each day. We’ve sold this reporting platform to over 40 clients and it continues to grow as a profitable new part of the business. We might not have invested in prioritizing this platform if it were not for the TIMESTEP interns who enabled us to prototype these efforts ahead of product development”
- Dan Janes (Madden Media, 2022)
Participated in Summer 2019 and 2021-2026
2022 and 2023 Interns have continued to work for Rincon.
"The TIMESTEP program creates a win-win scenario for both employers and interns"
"The onboarding process is faster, because the TIMESTEP intern has already been matched for skills, experience and interest for the role and job description." -Dan Hunt, Program Manager
"The students are consistently top-notch future employee prospects" -Katie Gibson, Senior Scientist
Fringe Metrology
Participated in 2024-26
"I can't think of another thing that is so win-win. We might not be able to hire a summer intern otherwise. We get the opportunity to work with well-vetted, very capable students to help with something we just never seem to have the time to get to. And, the students get paid to gain critical experiences at small companies, where often more direct responsibility and project involvement happens vs an internship at a large company."
-Joel Berkson, CEO
Participated in Summer 2019, 2022, 2023; Hired their 2023 TIMESTEP intern.
“The students I have worked with in the TIMESTEP program have all been eager to learn and to succeed.”
– Chris Foster, Chief Operating Officer