STARLIT Scholars Program

What is the STARLIT Scholars Program at CU Boulder?

The STARLIT Scholars Program at CU Boulder connects bright undergraduate and community college students with grant-funded summer internships. 

The STARLIT Scholars Program offers two tracks: a research track and an industry track. 

  • STARLIT Research Scholars engage in STARLIT-related research at a CU Boulder lab. Participating labs include the VADeR Lab, ORCCA, and . 
  • STARLIT Industry Scholars intern at STARLIT partner companies, including several companies that serve on STARLIT's Industry Advisory Board (IAB). 

All STARLIT Scholars receive:

  • A competitive stipend.
  • Wraparound administrative support.
  • Cohort-based programming with other STARLIT Scholars.
  • Professional development seminars and workshops. 

STARLIT Industry and Research Scholars must meet the following eligibility requirements:

  • U.S. Citizen.
  • Currently enrolled at the University of Colorado Boulder or a Colorado-based community college (via ).
  • Commit to a 10 - 12 week internship in summer 2025.
  • Working towards a STEM degree. We welcome students from all STEM academic backgrounds, including computer science, aerospace engineering, mechanical engineering, applied math, and/or astrophysics. 
  • Demonstrate interest in STARLIT-related topics, including cislunar space domain awareness, astrodynamics, object detection and tracking, sensing, conflict simulation and decision-making, and/or space policy.
  • We particularly welcome applications from female and/or underrepresented STEM students. 
  • We partner with the Summer Program in Undergraduate Research at CU Boulder to offer research track internships. 
  • We list STARLIT-specific projects on the SPUR project page. Interested students will apply to these specific projects. If selected for the project, students will become STARLIT Scholars.
  • SPUR begins accepting student applications in March 2025. Â鶹ÒùÔº are notified of their selection in April 2025.
  • The research internship lasts for 10 weeks, from mid-May to mid-August 2025. STARLIT Research Scholars work for 30 hours per week and participate in biweekly community-building events with other STARLIT Scholars.
  • If you have additional questions or would like to learn more, please reach out to Meaghan Allyn at meaghan.allyn@colorado.edu. 
  • We partner with Boulder- and Denver- area aerospace companies to offer industry internships for 8 - 10 STARLIT Scholars.
  • We will post applications for each company-specific internship on the CU Boulder Handshake portal in early January 2025.
  • As of December 5, 2025, we are still developing internship applications and have not yet posted on Handshake. 
  • Like STARLIT Research Scholars, STARLIT Industry Scholars participate in biweekly meetings focused on professional development, community-building and networking. 

We will consider external students for Research Track positions in the STARLIT Scholars program! If interested, please email Meaghan Allyn at meaghan.allyn@colorado.edu with your resumé and a one-page description of your research interests related to the STARLIT award.

Thank you for your interest! Please contact Meaghan Allyn, STARLIT Outreach Project Manager, at meaghan.allyn@colorado.edu. 

 

Flow diagram illustrating the dual-track STARLIT Scholars program.