What it does: Conducts biomedical and public health research to aid Americans in living longer and healthier.
Mission: The company seeks fundamental knowledge about the nature and behaviour of living systems in order to apply that knowledge to enhance health, lengthen life, and reduce illness and disability.
Size and presence: The company employs 20,262 people, including 6,000 research scientists in its various specialised research institutes.
Best known for: NIH is known for being one of the largest sources of funding for medical research in the world and creating hundreds of thousands of high-quality jobs.
The good bits: NIH continues to be the steward of medical and behavioural research in the nation, improving the health of countless Americans, and driving economic growth and productivity while cultivating the biomedical workforce of today and tomorrow.
The not-so-good bits: Employees have reported that work can tend to be tedious at times alongside long working conditions for certain positions.
The NIH traces its roots to a humble one-room laboratory built within the Marine Hospital Service (MHS) back in 1887, which was a predecessor agency to the U.S. Public Health Service (PHS). The MHS was established in order to provide medical care for military personnel when they fell sick at sea.
During this time, the US government did not support any health-related research but, with the gradual widespread acceptance of the germ theory in the 1870s wherein scientists concluded that diseases could be traced to specific causes, the government began putting more interest and finding into these researches. And as a result, the government decided to expand the role of the MHS to include bacteriological research and a laboratory was set up at the MHS facilities in Staten Island, New York. As the years went by, the laboratory continued to expand in size, staffing and funding, researching various health fields which have led to what it is today presently.
The NIH prides itself on being ranked among the Best Places to Work in the Federal Government, receiving a hefty employee engagement score of 81.7 out of 100 so it has definitely established itself as a company invested in its company culture and wellbeing. Starting off with diversity, NIH has an unusually diverse demographic, emphasising its aim of creating an inclusive environment built on the employees' shared love for research and helping the American people grow healthier.
Moreover, NIH has fostered a workplace where everybody knows they are cared for and works as one team with the NIH director going as far as to participate in weekly video interviews with staff members while providing numerous resources to improve their mental health.
Improving the workplace culture continues to remain an integral part of the company and with a dedicated Workforce and Support Development Division making sure every member of the NIH family is well cared for, the company can only grow from here.
The National Institutes of Health offers an anticipated 8-week Summer Internship Program in Biomedical Research to outstanding undergraduate and graduate students aspiring to pursue a career in biomedical/biological science and spend a summer working side by side with some of the leading scientists in the world.
Aspiring interns may apply from mid-November to March 1 and to be eligible, you must currently be a college, graduate school, or professional (e.g., medical, dental, pharmacy, etc.) school student, a US citizen or permanent resident.
To begin your internship application process, you must navigate to the Careers & Training Section of the NIH website and choose the Summer Internship Program wherein you will be asked to complete an online application. The application will ask you for the following: Contact details, A cover letter, a Resume, Letters of recommendation and a list of your courses and grades.
Applications are then reviewed on a rolling basis from November through April and applicants will generally be informed of their selection by May. Successful candidates will then be required to submit various documentation such as their official school transcripts, proof of US citizenship and vaccination card prior to the beginning of their training.
If you’re a fresh graduate looking to join one of the leading medical research institutes in the world, this is for you.
To begin your application, navigate to the job section of the NIH website wherein you may search for a job based on the title, category, location and Institute/Centre. Once you have chosen your position, you will be prompted to create an account before moving on to the online application process. Once that’s completed, you will be asked to enter your personal details, provide your resume, answer core and self-assessment questions and provide other supporting documents that depend on your position.
Your resume will then be reviewed and if they are interested, the hiring manager may request for a preliminary phone interview lasting 30-45 minutes and may ask to move forward for an on-site interview wherein you get the chance to demonstrate your qualification and get to know each other more. The employer will then assess the results of the interview and make a decision and if interested, will provide a job offer. Afterwards, you may begin the onboarding process which typically involves a background check, drug screen and physical and an introduction.
NIH takes pride in providing a number of resources and avenues for employees in order to develop a highly-skilled workforce. Employees can expect career support and training, access to leadership development opportunities, networking events, mentoring and guidance which can enable you to build a career around what you’re most passionate about alongside providing you with extra skills and qualifications which can benefit your future career prospects and help you climb up the ladder once you’ve proven yourself.
Interns working at NIH can expect an average annual salary ranging from $28,212 to $31,540 depending on factors like position and the level of education completed. On the other hand, fresh graduates and entry-level employees can expect an annual base salary starting from $34,000. But with experience, on a national level, the average salary to be expected is $55,000.
The National Institutes of Health offers a competitive and comprehensive benefits package:
NIH has contributed irreplaceable medical breakthroughs to society over the years, starting with how they created the first cancer drug targeted at a family of molecules called kinases. This phenomenal discovery launched a new wave of drug development, with drug companies creating dozens of other drugs targeting similar molecules to treat cancer and other diseases- an incredible feat for the health of the world. Moreover, the company has also funded over 50 thousand grants that directly supported 313,049 full- and part-time positions, cultivating future scientists that would help change the world.