Goddard High School Shadow Day Program
The agency’s main goals are to inspire and motivate students to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, and to engage the public in shaping and sharing the experience of exploration and discovery.
Spring 2025 Applications Opening Soon!
The Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) Office of STEM Engagement (OSTEM) is piloting a one-day career-focused experience for high school students on May 21, 2025 in Greenbelt, MD. Participants will be matched with subject matter expert(s) (scientist, engineer, etc.) who work in one (1) of 12 career areas. Participants will gain awareness of Goddard careers and NASA’s missions and work. Whether it’s electrical engineering, astrophysics, or any other STEM field, the subject matter expert provides valuable guidance and insight into necessary workforce skills and their day-to-day work.
Shadow Day will be conducted on site at NASA Goddard in Greenbelt, MD. The event will be limited to the first eligible registrations received for each career area. Applications for career areas will close once filled. Event information and logistics will be sent to approved applicants once the registration site has closed.
Eligibility/ Requirements
- This opportunity is open to High School students who are United States citizens or Lawful Permanent Residents.
- Students must be enrolled in a public, private, charter, or home school located in the state of Maryland or the District of Columbia.
- Students are responsible for their own transportation to the check-in location at the Goddard Visitor Center in Greenbelt, MD.
- Adults are not permitted to participate with their student(s) during the event.
Key Dates
Spring 2025 High School Shadow Day
- Registration Opens – March 24, 2025
- Registration Closes – April 18, 2025
- Event Date – May 21, 2025
- Event Time – 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. Eastern; Students should arrive 9 – 9:45 a.m. Eastern for check-in
Registration Information
To apply, go to STEM Gateway: https://stemgateway.nasa.gov
- Create a profile in STEM Gateway.
- Submit an application to only one (1) of the 12 career areas listed below. If applications are submitted for multiple areas, only the first application will be considered. If your preferences change and a different area interests you, you must withdraw the previous application. There are limited slots for each career area and the application for each career area will close once filled. If the application is no longer available, please select a different career area to apply.
- Upload a short essay (maximum 2500 characters) written by the student that addresses why they want to participate in this shadowing experience. This essay should be uploaded as a Supporting Document (Word or PDF) in the application. The student’s essay should address the following four questions:
- What would you like to achieve through participation in this program?
- How have your past experiences (e.g., classes, clubs, organizations, teams, programs, and activities) influenced what you would like to achieve?
- How would this opportunity impact your future?
- What do you know about NASA?
- Upload a signed “NASA GSFC OSTEM: High School Shadow Day Principal/Counselor Acknowledgment” as a Supporting Document (PDF or image) in the application. The student’s principal or counselor needs to sign this form to acknowledge the student’s participation during school time. The Acknowledgment form can be downloaded at the link below.
Students ages 14-17 must enter a parent or guardian’s email address as part of the application process. The parent/guardian’s email address will receive instructions to approve the student’s application.
Project Areas
Choose a single area of interest from the list below and apply only to your top choice. Click on the links below to apply. Individual areas of interest may close early when they become full.
- Accounting and Finance – This career area highlights business professionals who work side-by-side with engineers and scientists to support critical operations and develop innovative solutions to explore new frontiers.
- Astrophysics – This career area examines the universe and all aspects of it: black holes, stars and star formation, galaxies, search for life or precursors for life, including astrobiology.
- Earth Science – This career area examines climate and weather science to understand and predict how our planet works and responds, and the effects on humans (landsides, fires, floods, drought, disease outbreaks, food security, etc.).
- Electrical Engineering – This career area builds solar-powered gadgets, designs the brains of computers, and sends messages through the air!
- Heliophysics – This career area seeks to understand how the Sun works and the environment around the Sun, as well as, solar wind and space weather prediction.
- Instrument Systems and Technology – This career area is at the forefront of space exploration, designing and developing the eyes and ears of NASA’s most ambitious missions that unlock the secrets of the universe and monitor our own home planet.
- Mechanical Systems – This career area pursues designing, building, and testing spaceflight hardware that will be launched into space to study our planet and explore the universe.
- Mission Engineering and Systems Analysis – This career area makes the impossible possible from building hardware to fully integrating a spacecraft and defining its trajectory and required maneuvers to determining its orientation.
- Planetary Science – This career area includes anything in our solar system, other planets, asteroids, comets, moons, asteroid belts, search for life and precursors of life.
- Science Communications – This career area markets space science and raises awareness through numerous communications tools and processes.
- Software Engineering – This career area is on the cutting-edge of developing software to power space missions, enable exploration of the universe and solving complex scientific challenges.
- Supercomputing and Visualization – This career area combines computing with creating visualization products (videos, animation) to understand science and the research activities.
If multiple applications are submitted for different interests, only the first one will be considered. If you change your mind and want to apply to a different area of interest, you must withdraw the previous application. After registration closes, eligible registrants will receive a welcome letter with logistics for attending the Shadow Day event. Please be aware that submitting your application through NASA STEM Gateway does not confirm acceptance to attend this event. While you will receive a receipt acknowledging the accepted offer from NASA STEM Gateway, this does not serve as confirmation of your attendance at the event. Acceptance as a participant is confirmed only upon receipt of a welcome letter via email.
If you have any technical problems with the application process, please reach out to the Gateway Help Desk at hq-nasa-stem-gateway@mail.nasa.gov. Include a description of the issue and any necessary screenshots.
If you have any questions about the event itself or need non-technical assistance with the application process, please contact the Goddard Space Flight Center – Office of STEM Engagement, (301) 286 – 7887.
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