2025 Summer Internship Grant

Come work with us this summer!

• Deadline: December 18, 2024, 11:59PM EST.
• To apply : https://forms.gle/63Sbf8QLVqmTgFNy7 (Trottier grant, Instrumentation grant, or both)
• Contact Marie-Eve Naud at marie-eve.naud@umontreal.ca if you have questions.

Please note our information sessions:

• In French: Tuesday, November 26, 12:30 to 1:30 pm, in person at Université de Montréal’s MIL campus, A-3551. Bring your lunch, we’ll provide a small dessert! (registration required here)
• In English: Wednesday, November 27, 7:30 to 8:30 p.m., virtual on Zoom (registration required here)

At IREx, the summer internships last 4 months (May to August). They are a unique opportunity for undergraduate students to join IREx’s dynamic team and get involved in cutting-edge research in astrophysics, instrumentation development, or science communication. Interns will be able to actively participate in breakthrough scientific and outreach programs linked to exoplanets and related topics.

Please visit our dedicated page to learn more about our summer internship program. YYou can also learn more about our interns, their projects and their experience with us by reading the testimonials of the students who joined us in 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020 and 2019. You can also see the 2023 Interns Interview video series, featuring the 2023 cohort, and visit our Instagram Account to learn more about 2024 Interns.

Trottier Research Grants

This award is named in honor of the Trottier Family Foundation, which supports this summer internship program as well as a large portion of the research and education activities of our Institute.

Two interns working on their research project. Credit: S.-M.-F. Gravel Depalle.

Each year, the Trottier Research Excellence Grants are offered to five or six outstanding candidates to conduct scientific research at IREx, supervised by our professors and their teams.

The projects on offer cover a range of topics related to the search for and characterization of exoplanets and exploit data obtained at space (K2, TESS, JWST) and ground-based (OMM, CFHT, Gemini, La Silla) observatories using different techniques (velocimetry, transit, eclipse and transit spectroscopy, direct imaging). Projects are also offered in related fields of astrophysics, such as the search for companions and isolated low-mass objects, the identification of young stars that are potential hosts for exoplanets, or the study of stellar activity that has an impact on planet detection. More details on the scientific programs of IREx are available on the Institute’s website. 

Grant Amount: This scholarship can be combined with an NSERC Undergraduate Student Research Award (USRA):

• NSERC scholarship holders receive $ 10,000 ($4000 from IREx and $6000 from NSERC).
• Non-NSERC scholarship holders receive a minimum total amount of $9000 ($6000 from IREx and at least $3000 from their supervisor).

Location: The internships take place on-site (or in a hybrid on-site + remote working mode) in Montreal, at the Université de Montréal (Professors Björn Benneke, René Doyon, David Lafrenière), at UdeM and Planétarium de Montréal (Adjunct Professor Jonathan Gagné) or at McGill University (Professor Nicolas Cowan); or in Sherbrooke, at Bishop’s University (Professor Jason Rowe). Also, one intern may be offered the possibility to work at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope for a few weeks, on the Big Island of Hawai’i in the United States.

Interns generally can participate in one observing trip at the Observatoire du Mont-Mégantic during the summer, condition permitting.

Eligibility requirements: To be eligible, applicants must be registered in a Canadian university* in a program leading to a bachelor’s degree in physics, astronomy or a related field.

*Please note! To be eligible, candidates 

• must be registered at the university in the winter session preceding their internship (undergraduate) AND
• must register for the fall session following their internship (undergraduate or graduate).

Instrumentation Grant – New in 2025!

The telescope at the Mont-Mégantic Observatory is one of the places where the intern will be working. Credit: J. St-Antoine.

IREx and the Mont-Mégantic Observatory (OMM) have a major astronomical instrumentation development program. The OMM’s Laboratoire d’astrophysique expérimental (LAE) designs and builds astronomical instruments for the OMM and for observatories around the world. The Instrumentation Grant is awarded to an exceptional candidate to work on several projects related to the design and construction of astronomical instruments dedicated to various observatories. The ‘Instrumentation’ section of our website gives more information on some of the current projects.

Amount: The successful candidate will receive a $9,000 bursary.

Location: The internships take place on-site (or in a hybrid on-site + remote working mode) at the Université de Montréal with the OMM/IREx instrumentation team, under the supervision of René Doyon. The intern will also be expected to participate in one or more technical and observational mission(s) at the Mont-Mégantic Observatory during the summer.

Eligibility requirements: To be eligible, applicants must be registered in a Canadian university* in a program leading to program leading to a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, software engineering, computer engineering, engineering physics, physics, astronomy or a related field.

*Please note! To be eligible, candidates 

• must be registered at the university in the winter session preceding their internship (undergraduate) AND
• must register for the fall session following their internship (undergraduate or graduate).

Sureau Science Communication Grant

The Sureau Science Communication Grant is not offered in 2025, two grants will be offered every two years starting in 2026.

Other internships

In addition to the Trottier and Instrumentation Grants, every year other interns are recruited by our professors and paid out of their research funds. The same eligibility requirements apply. By submitting your application for a Trottier Grant, you allow our professors and their team to consider your file for these internships as well.

To apply

Download our poster (PNG, PDF)

To apply for a Trottier Grant, an Instrumentation Grant, or both, fill out the following form: https://forms.gle/63Sbf8QLVqmTgFNy7, and attach your application document. This document must include, in a single PDF file (in this order) :

1. (If applicable) a statement of interest for the Trottier Research Grant (1 page max). In your letter, you can elaborate on your motivation for the internship and the various aspects addressed in the questions on the form.
2. (If applicable) a statement of interest for the Instrumentation Grant (1 page max). In your letter, you can elaborate on your motivation for the internship and the various aspects addressed in the questions on the form.
3. a curriculum vitae (3 pages max)
4. an academic transcript. If you have not yet been evaluated at a university, please include both your University transcript AND a Cegep/High School transcript on which your R Score or your High School K12 average appears.

Deadline: December 18, 2024, 11:59 PM, EST

Successful applicants will be notified in early February 2025.

Contact Marie-Eve Naud at marie-eve.naud@umontreal.ca  if you have any questions.

About IREx

IREx consists of a growing team of about 60 people working on a variety of observational, theoretical and instrumental projects related to the study of exoplanets and other related fields of astrophysics. They work within several research institutions located in Quebec, Canada (Université de Montréal, McGill University, Bishop’s University, Planetarium of Space for Life, Université Laval). Our professors, researchers, and students are actively involved in large international projects related to the detection and characterisation of exoplanets, notably the James Webb Space Telescope, the SPIRou and NIRPS spectrographs, and have privileged access to time and data from these instruments.

IREx has also a vibrant science education and outreach program led by astrophysicists who are seasoned science communicators. We believe in the importance of training scientists who have exceptional scientific research skills, but also outstanding communication skills. All of our members are involved in bringing science to a wide audience in a variety of ways.

IREx advocates for diversity, inclusion and employment equity. We strongly encourage applications from women, visible and ethnic minorities, Indigenous people, persons with disabilities and people of all sexual orientations and gender identities to apply. With the support of our EDI committee, we are committed to the professional integration of people from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in the physics research community.

If you have any questions about the IREx, the Trottier Excellence Grants or the Sureau Grant, please contact Marie-Eve Naud, marie-eve.naud@umontreal.ca.