Students

Applications for the 2025 Geothermal Rising Scholarships have closed! Recipients will be notified by mid-August. 

The 2025 Geothermal Rising Student Research Award application will open in late July.  Keep an eye on this website or check out our Linkden page. 

For any questions or general inquiries, please email students@geothermal.org

Each year the Student Committee organizes workshops for our student members for free or a small fee.  These workshops and webinars cover a variety of topics related to geothermal and are intended to support students educational aspirations and goals.  

You can visit our student committee Utube page to view past webinars or visit the Geothermal Rising main UTube page for more resources. 

We are currently soliciting feedback on workshop topics for 2025!  Fill out this quick form and let us know what you think! 

The Annual Geothermal Rising Conference will be held from October 26 to 29, 2025, in Reno, Nevada. Student-focused events take place every year, so mark your calendars! This is the event you want to be at!

Student Activities

Geothermal Rising's NextGen Geo Committee invites all student participants and young professional advocates, both member and non-member alike, to connect and engage with their geothermal community peers. GR Student activities provide fun, interactive opportunities for you to grow your personal geothermal networking community and make some new friends along the way!

NextGen Geo Events

Sunday, October 26

• 6:00 PM - 6:30 PM | GR Student Members Icebreaker | Ice breaker events are designed to help people get to know each other and create a comfortable atmosphere for interaction. This event is an informal opportunity to meet the GR Student Committee and other students attending the conference. Come join the student committee for an icebreaker to kick off a great week!

Monday, October 27

• 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM | Lunch Time: GR Mentor-Mentee Meetup | Have you ever wanted a mentor in the geothermal industry to bounce ideas off of? Ever struggle to find the next move in your career development plan? Then join us for lunch on Monday to network with experienced geothermal professionals and establish mentorship for the conference and beyond! Students will hear a 1-minute introduction from each mentor and then choose to connect with mentors who best align with their academic and professional interests. Mentors have been identified as some of the most successful professionals in industry and academia and have graciously donated their time and talents to help the next generation of geothermal professionals. Thank you, mentors!

Tuesday, October 28

• 10:00 AM- 12:00 PM | NextGen Geo Session: The Importance of Education in Geothermal Energy | Join us before lunch for an engaging panel hosted by NextGen Geo on “The Importance of Education in Geothermal Energy”. Aimed at empowering students and encouraging heightened focus from geothermal professionals, this session will explore the value of knowledge sharing, workforce training, and educational pathways in geothermal energy. Engage with panelists through thought-provoking discussions and interactive activities designed to inspire renewed awareness towards the significance of educating the next generation of geothermal professionals. 

• 4:30 PM – 6:30 PM | Geothermal Hall of Fame and Awards Ceremony | The Geothermal Hall of Fame and Awards Ceremony isn't just any gathering—it's a chance for YOU to recognize the driving force of our dynamic association – the GR community members that are making a positive difference, conducting cutting-edge research, and leading the charge in the advancement of geothermal energy! Join fellow members from across the globe as we recognize these individuals’ accomplishments. Student Scholarship winners, Poster Session winners, and the GR NextGen Geo Committee Student Research Award winners will be announced at this event.

• 7:00 PM - 8:00 PM | GR Trivia Night | Here's your chance to flex your mental muscles and have a blast doing it! Trivia Night is a fantastic opportunity to connect with fellow conference attendees and bond over shared triumphs and near misses! Compete for fun, prizes, and glory. This activity is included with your conference registration.

Conference Long Events

• Sunday – Wednesday | Student Volunteer Options | Geothermal Rising provides opportunities for the geothermal student community to obtain discounted or complimentary GRC registration by volunteering at the conference. If you are interested in this exciting opportunity, please complete the form.
• Sunday – Wednesday | Geothermal Expedition Challenge | Unleash your inner explorer by joining the second year of our Geothermal Expedition Challenge! Part scavenger hunt, part mobile trivia - this challenge is a fantastic opportunity to take full advantage of the conference!  Don't miss out on this chance to engage with attendees, make lasting memories, and compete for prizes! This activity is included with your conference registration.
• Sunday – Wednesday | Student Committee Booth/Merch Sales | Be sure to stop by the Student Committee Booth to inquire about Student Membership, browse the 2025 GRC Student Committee merchandise items, and much more!
• Sunday – Wednesday | NEW: Expanded Headshot Services | Step into our Professional Headshot Booth to get a high-quality portrait taken by a skilled photographer perfect for LinkedIn profiles, company websites, and networking opportunities. Look your best and leave with a lasting impression! Additional details, including dates and times, are forthcoming.
• Sunday – Wednesday | NEW: GRC Attendee Choropleth Map | Have you ever wondered how far Geothermal Rising reaches across the globe? So have we! Come stop by the GR Student Committee booth and place a pin on your city of origin to help us create a nice visual of our global reach.

Please visit the main webpage for more information

The 2025 Student Travel Grant Application is now CLOSED! Applicants will be notified by July 24th. 

The travel grant is sponsored by the Student Committee, WING and Eavor.

The 2024 Geothermal Collegiate Competition seeks to engage students across geosciences, engineering, finance, regional planning, sustainability, policy, design, communications, and other disciplines to reimagine how to heat and cool their communities and campuses.

Students will assume the role of a developer of a geothermal heating and cooling system for a district-scale application.

The competition has two tracks—Technical and Policy—focused on different aspects of implementing geothermal heating and cooling systems.

First-place teams in each track will earn $10,000, an opportunity to host a community event, and national recognition; second-place teams will receive $6,000; and third-place teams will win $2,000. Outstanding submission from a Tribal College or Community College will win $2,000 cash prize

Registration is now open through October 7! Follow the challenge on HeroX, set up your account, and have one team member complete the registration form by clicking “Solve the Challenge.”

 To learn more about the competition, read the official rules and watch the promo video and the recorded information session.

Questions? Sign up to speak with a competition organizer or email geo.competition@nrel.gov.

Registration for the 2024 Switch Competition opened September 1st and students and volunteers will have until September 27th to sign up. We already have a number of teams and volunteers registered but we need many more! So...

• Students, please remind your friends to sign up
• Faculty please tell your students about this great opportunity
• And everyone else, please spread the word among your friends and colleagues to sign up to help mentor teams and judge submissions! 

Let’s make this year’s competition the biggest yet!

Click the links below to register!

Student Registration

Mentors & Judges

Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internship (SULI)
The Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internship (SULI) program encourages undergraduate students to pursue science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers by providing research. Selected students participate as interns appointed at one of 17 participating DOE laboratories/facilities. They perform research, under the guidance of laboratory staff scientists or engineers, on projects supporting the DOE mission. Fall and spring programs are 15 weeks. Summer program is 10 weeks.

Community College Internship (CCI)
The Community College Internship (CCI) program provides technical training experiences for community college students to enter technical careers relevant to the DOE mission.

Graduate Student Research Program (SCGSR)
The SCGSR research proposal is developed by the applying graduate student in collaboration with a NREL laboratory research scientist, and in consultation with the student’s primary graduate thesis advisor. The SCGSR research proposal includes the scope of thesis research proposed to be conducted at NREL.

Download more Information on DOE Student Programs

Full-time undergraduate or graduate students have the opportunity to join the NREL team as an intern while gaining valuable mentoring experience, participating in the lab's research and development programs, and establishing ongoing collaborations through NREL's Research Participant Program.

NREL is a national laboratory of the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, operated by the Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC.

Learn More About this Internship

The (American Council On Renewable Energy) ACORE internship program is designed to mentor rising seniors and graduate students, as well as recent university graduates who are interested in making a career in the renewable energy industry. The focus of the program is to assist young professionals along the path of professional development, gaining the knowledge, resources and experience they need to join the renewable energy industry, whether it be in professional services, research, communications, market development, finance or policy.

Learn More About this Internship

Iceland GeoSurvey wishes to contribute to the dissemination of geothermal knowledge and technical expertise, in Iceland and elsewhere. To this end, Iceland GeoSurvey aims to accommodate up to two interns each year. The accommodation includes office space and admittance to research facilities at ISOR as well as supervision of an geothermal expert but no other financial support. This internship is limited to graduate students in geosciences, mechanical and chemical engineering as well as physics and chemistry that relates to earth sciences. Recommended internship duration is 5-6 months, starting in the period from September to March. The application deadline for internships is April 1 each year.

Learn More About this Internship

Each semester Iceland School of Energy offers several internship positions with leading energy companies in Iceland for our students to participate in. The positions are secured by Iceland School of Energy and give students the opportunity to work on stimulating energy projects that will expand their knowledge in the field of energy and allow them to develop professional skills in the sector.

Learn More About this Internship