PhD Intern - Language Intelligence Company Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Federal Contractor Location Helena, MT

Date Posted 09/17/2026

Description Overview At PNNL, our core capabilities are divided among major departments that we refer to as Directorates within the Lab, focused on a specific area of scientific research or other function, with its own leadership team and dedicated budget. Our Science & Technology directorates include National Security, Integrated Discovery Sciences, and Energy and Environment. In addition, we have an Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a Department of Energy, Office of Science user facility housed on the PNNL campus. The Integrated Discovery Sciences Directorate (IDSD) leads fundamental research across biology, chemistry, earth and environmental sciences, materials science, advancedputing, artificial intelligence, quantum information science, mathematics, autonomy, and DOE national user facilities. Our vision is to accelerate scientific discovery by observing, understanding, simulating, predicting, and controlling dynamic biotic-abiotic processes and interactions withinplex biological, chemical, material, and Earth systems. We intentionally connect disciplines to advance fundamental discovery science, develop transformative scientific capabilities, and address the nation's most important challenges in energy, environmental resilience, biotechnology, advanced manufacturing, health, and national security. Responsibilities Application and training/evaluation of large language models. Natural language processing, prompt engineering and Agentic solutions. General data science, data curation and data processing. Applied mathematical principles to identify trends in data sets. Qualifications Minimum Qualifications Candidates must be currently enrolled/matriculated in a PhD program at an accredited college, specifically in Computer Science, Data Science, Computational Linguistics, Artificial Intelligence, Applied Mathematics, or a related technical field. Hands-on programming experience in Python. Coursework or applied/research experience in NLP or large language models. Minimum GPA of 3.0 is required. Preferred Qualifications Relevant coursework covering a subset of the following areas NLP, Deep Learning, and LLM agents.

Considerable experience in high level programming with familiarity to Python and experience with NLP libraries (e.g., Hugging Face, dockerization). Demonstrated ability to bridge research and engineering, i.e., capable of formulating novel approaches and implementing functional prototypes. Hands-on experience with agentic and orchestration frameworks (e.g., LangChain, LangGraph, or similar) including tool-use, function calling, and multi-step reasoning pipelines. Familiarity with cloud platforms (AWS, Azure) and machine learning frameworks (e.g., PyTorch). Experience with multi-agent collaboration frameworks, agent failure modes and agent RL methods development. Demonstratable experience in conducting scientific exploration and research through artifacts such as scientific publications and software tools. Prior experience in developing and deploying domain-specific (e.g., science, legal) NLP applications. Testing Designated Position This is not a Testing Designated Position (TDP). About PNNL Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) is a world-class research institution powered by a highly educated, diverse workforcemitted to the values of Integrity, Creativity, Collaboration, Impact, and Courage. Every year, scores of dynamic, driven peoplee to PNNL to work with renowned researchers on meaningful science, innovations and oues for the U.S. Department of Energy and other sponsors; is your chance to be one of them! At PNNL, you will find an exciting research environment and excellent benefits including health insurance, and flexible work schedules. PNNL is located in eastern Washington State-the dry side of Washington known for its stellar outdoor recreation and affordable cost of living. The Lab's campus is only a 45-minute flight (or ~3 hour drive) from Seattle or Portland, and is serviced by the convenient PSC airport, connected to 8 major hubs. Commitment to Excellence and Equal Employment Opportunity Our laboratory ismitted to fostering a work environment w all individuals are treated with fairness and respect while solving critical challenges in fundamental sciences, national security, and energy resiliency. We are an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) is an Equal Opportunity Employer. PNNL considers all applicants for employment without regard to race, religion, color, sex, national origin, age, disability, genetic information (including family medical history), protected veteran status, and any other status or characteristic protected by federal, state, and/or local laws. We aremitted to providing reasonable amodations for individuals with disabilities and disabled veterans in our job application procedures and in employment. If you need assistance or an amodation due to a disability, contact us at careerspnnl . Drug Free Workplace PNNL ismitted to a drug-free workplace supported by Workplace Substance Abuse Program (WSAP) andplies with federal laws prohibiting the possession and use of illegal drugs. Security, Credentialing, and Eligibility Requirements As a national laboratory, PNNL is responsible for adhering to the Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12) and Department of Energy (DOE) Order 473.1A, which require new employees to obtain and maintain a HSPD-12 Personal Identify Verification (PIV) Credential. To obtain this credential, new employees must successfullyplete the applicable tier of federal background investigation post hire and receive a favorable federal adjudication. The tier of federal background investigation will be determined by job duties and national security or public trust responsibilities associated with the job. All tiers of investigation include a declaration of illegal drug activities, including use, supply, possession, or manufacture within the last 1 to 7 years (depending on the applicable tier of investigation). Illegal drug activities include marijuana and cannabis derivatives, which are still considered illegal under federal law, regardless of state laws. For foreign national candidates If you have not resided in the U.S. for three consecutive years, you are not eligible for the PIV credential and instead will need to obtain a favorable Local Site Specific Only (LSSO) Federal risk determination to maintain employment. Once you meet the three-year residency requirement tafter, you will be required to obtain a PIV credential to maintain employment. The tier of federal background investigation required to obtain the PIV credential will be determined by job duties at the time you be eligible for the PIV credential. Mandatory Requirements Please be aware that the Department of Energy (DOE) prohibits DOE employees and contractors from having any affiliation with the foreign government of a country DOE has identified as a "country of risk" without explicit approval by DOE and Battelle. If you are offered a position at PNNL and currently have any affiliation with the government of one of these countries, you will be required to disclose this information and recuse yourself of that affiliation or receive approval from DOE and Battelle prior to your first day of employment. Rockstar Rewards Regular Hourly Employees are offered an employee assistance program and business travel insurance. Employees are eligible for thepany funded pension plan and 401k savings plan, once eligibility requirements are met. Temporary Hourly Employees are offered an employee assistance program and business travel insurance. Click Here For Rockstar Rewards (careers.pnnl/rockstar-rewards) Notice to Applicants PNNL lists the full pay range for the position in the job posting. Starting pay is calculated from the minimum of the pay range and actual placement in the range is determined based on an individual's relevant job-related skills, qualifications, and experience. This approach is applicable to all positions, with the exception of positions governed by collective bargaining agreements and certain limited-term positions which have specific pay rules. As part of ourmitment to fairpensation practices, we do not ask for or consider current or past salaries in makingpensation offers at hire. Instead, ourpensation offers are determined by the specific requirements of the position, prevailing market trends, applicable collective bargaining agreements, pay equity for the position type, and individual qualifications and skills relevant to the performance of the position. Minimum Salary USD $24.04/Hr. Maximum Salary USD $36.06/Hr.