Who can apply?
- Applicants must be at least 18 at the start of the program and must have completed at least three semesters or four quarters at an accredited US college or university before the internship begins.
- Applicants must attend a school in a US state or territory, be eligible to work in the United States, and have a strong desire to pursue a PhD in a biomedical field. Students already enrolled in PhD, master's, PharmD or MD programs are not eligible.
- Novartis describes the program as a paid, full-time research opportunity with pay competitive with local internship wages, dorm-style university housing, and support for travel and local transit based on its own assessment.
The Summer of Science page lists the three reference letters among the documents your application must upload — unlike the postbaccalaureate program on the same page, where referees get their own link. Have the letters in hand as PDFs well before December 7.
Dates, pay & program timing
For 2027 Novartis lists an application deadline of December 7, 2026, notifications in February 2027, and a ten-week program starting at the end of May or beginning of June 2027. The date is published without a time of day, and the page says materials must arrive by the deadlines shown in the application portal, so check the portal for the exact cutoff. Interview invitations go out between late January and February, and offers are made on a rolling basis through the end of February.
These details reflect the sources at the review date. An overview is not a live job offer. Check the official page for today's application status and the selected opening's written terms.
How to apply to Novartis
- Count your completed terms: three semesters or four quarters must be finished before the internship starts, which on a semester calendar usually rules out students who are in their first year when they apply.
- Gather the uploads as PDFs — cover letter, personal statement, resume or CV, three letters of reference and an official transcript — and start the application at the portal linked from the Novartis page while it is open.
- Select one or more areas of interest inside the application and submit before December 7, 2026. Novartis says it cannot accept or respond to applications sent by email.
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Our editorial advice · not employer requirements
How to prepare a stronger application
The program is built for students who intend to do a PhD, and each intern designs and runs a project with a Biomedical Research mentor. Your personal statement should name the kind of question you want to work on — a disease area, a technique, a computational method — and show what you have already done to test that interest.
Interns live together in a university dorm suite with roommates, and cohort activities are part of the program. If anything would pull you away during the ten weeks, resolve it before accepting rather than after.
Students with a double major or minor combining STEM with business or finance can apply for a limited number of places paired with Biomedical Research finance supervisors. If that describes you, say so explicitly and explain which side you want to test.
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We reviewed these publisher pages on . They establish the program facts above; our preparation suggestions are independent editorial guidance.
We do not infer deadlines, remote eligibility, or guaranteed offers from older recruiting cycles. Read our editorial process.