The summer internship opportunity is a 10-week, paid residential internship. Students selected for this internship will receive a stipend and on-campus housing. The research internship program typically runs between late May and early August each summer, with some flexibility for students at universities that end semesters later. Usually, well over 700 students from around the country apply for one of 5-15 slots.
There are many benefits to these internships, not just the typical skills and experience boost for the students, but also for Wake Forest and the mentors. Over the years we have identified several particularly skilled interns that became full-time employees after graduation. Other interns have continued in extended internships working beyond the end of the summer and published papers with our faculty mentors.
At the end of the internship, we survey the students on their experience. Several have reported that due to the internship they have changed their future plans to include applying to Wake Forest for graduate school. Other students have said the internship has opened their eyes to the extensiveness of the field of biomedical informatics, particularly the wide range of career options.
Connection to REU Program from Wake Forest/ Virginia Tech Biomedical Engineering
Our WFBMI Informatics Summer Internship is a part of the REU (Research Experience for Undergraduates) Program held by jointly by WFBMI and Wake Forest and Virginia Tech Biomedical Engineering. Informatics interns are primarily selected from those who apply to the REU Program. However, alternative application avenues such as internships.com are available for high school and graduate students.
At the end of the summer REU Internship program, students present their work at a Symposium. Awards are given for the best presentation for each category, and some awards include covering the cost of presenting the research at a conference. Informatics interns have routinely scored well and won awards each year.
