Deep Impact: How Hands-On Experience Is Delivering for U.S. NSF LCCF Interns

Meet the fourth U.S. National Science Foundation Leadership-Class Computing Facility (NSF LCCF) Internship cohort! Over a 20-week period, six interns received training on cutting-edge computing resources, workplace readiness, and team-building opportunities. Read about their experiences, lessons learned, and why these interns recommend that others apply to the NSF LCCF Internship.

Sai Aditya Koduri

Mentorship Group: High Performance Computing (HPC)

Mentor(s): Victor Eijkhout

Why did you apply for the NSF LCCF Internship?

I wanted to gain real-world experience in software engineering and contribute to projects that make a positive impact on society.

What project(s) did you work on during your time as an LCCF Intern?

I worked on automating and optimizing high performance computing workflows. The objective was to develop Python-based automation tools to streamline job submissions, log management, and load environment configurations across multiple compiler and module setups for supercomputing systems like Lonestar 6 and Stampede3.

What did you enjoy most about being an LCCF Intern?

I enjoyed working on my project and learning new skills, especially within the positive environment at TACC.

How will the LCCF Internship help you move forward in your career?

The internship has given me hands-on experience with supercomputing systems and scalable software tools. I’ve strengthened a wide range of technical skills and feel prepared for work in related technical fields.

How did your background prepare you for this opportunity?

My technical background made it easier for me to learn how to integrate commands through the supercomputers with Python for the testing framework.

Why should others apply to the program?

This program helps you discover the skills you’re good at and improve on the ones you’re not, boosting your technical and interpersonal skills. Overall, this was a fun experience.

Meagan Crystal Galvan

Mentorship Group: Visualization

Mentor(s): Francesca Samsel, Anne Bowen

Why did you apply for the NSF LCCF Internship?

I was drawn to this opportunity because it is tailored to people looking to get started in the technology industry. I wanted to work with and learn directly from professionals to build skills that can be carried into any professional environment.

What project(s) did you work on during your time as an LCCF Intern?

I helped develop online research studies that focused on moving beyond color differentiation in data analysis and instead used elements like shapes, textures, and patterns. A large part of my work involved building and organizing surveys in Qualtrics, where I set up question flows and formatted visual elements. Through this process, I gained valuable experience using Qualtrics as a research tool and learned how thoughtful design choices can impact data quality and user responses.

What did you enjoy most about being an LCCF Intern?

I valued learning directly from experienced professionals in a supportive environment. TACC researchers and experts were willing to answer questions and explain not just what they were doing, but why it mattered. This made the learning experience feel meaningful and helped me feel more confident as I developed new skills.

How will the LCCF Internship help you move forward in your career?

I have a better understanding of what it is like to be in a professional setting. This program gave me hands-on experience being part of a team, communicating effectively, and thoughtfully approaching problems. The technical exposure I gained will be valuable as I continue pursuing opportunities in technology.

How did your background prepare you for this opportunity?

My computer science background gave me a strong foundation for learning new tools, problem-solving, and adapting to new environments.

Why should others apply to the program?

This is an excellent opportunity for anyone interested in technology, regardless of your experience level. The program offers in-depth learning, mentorship from professionals, and exposure to meaningful work that supports real research efforts.

Beniyam Demissie

Mentorship Group: Data Collections and Management

Mentor(s): Lydia Fletcher

Why did you apply for the NSF LCCF Internship?

I wanted to get closer to the kind of work that sits behind high-level research and the tools and systems that make data usable and science thrive. I was also drawn to the mix of technical challenges and mentorship.

What project(s) did you work on during your time as an LCCF Intern?

I built a catalog for data stored at TACC. The objective was to make datasets easier to use and discover by organizing them into a consistent structure, capturing the key metadata researchers need, and setting things up so the catalog could stay accurate as new data gets added.

What did you enjoy most about being an LCCF Intern?

This internship was an opportunity to contribute to meaningful infrastructure while seeing a clearer picture of what I want to do long-term. It was satisfying to take something as messy as large scale research data and turn it into a system that’s organized, searchable, and useful. I also enjoyed the supportive learning environment at TACC. I was able to ask questions, get direct feedback, and work alongside people who care about doing things the right way.

How will the LCCF Internship help you move forward in your career?

The internship gave me real-world experience building systems that operate at scale and support research. I was encouraged to think like an engineer about reliability, organization, and long-term maintainability, especially when working with large amounts of data. I built confidence working on a team, taking feedback, and communicating progress clearly. Moving forward, I can point to this work as concrete evidence of my ability to contribute to infrastructure, aligning well with the software engineering and data-focused roles I plan to pursue after graduation.

How did your background prepare you for this opportunity?

In classes and personal projects, I’ve had to teach myself new concepts quickly, test things, make mistakes, and adjust until it works, so I’m accustomed to learning fast and getting up to speed on unfamiliar tools. That helped a lot during this experience, where there was a learning curve with how research data is organized and how TACC systems operate.

Why should others apply to the program?

This is a program where you actually grow through doing real work, not just observing. You get tangible experience with projects that matter, and you learn how professional engineering teams think about scale, quality, and impact.

Arianna Austin

Mentorship Group: Life Sciences

Mentor(s): Lorenzo Concia, Kelsey Beavers

Why did you apply for the NSF LCCF Internship?

I was nearing the end of my college career studying cellular and molecular biology when I realized I wanted to transition into the computational biology field but wasn’t sure how to go about it. A friend who was already an intern at TACC recommended the program, and I applied right away.

What project(s) did you work on during your time as an LCCF Intern?

My project was the de novo transcriptome assembly for the diatom Fragilariopsis cylindrus, allowing us to see what genes are being actively expressed. A transcriptome is the collection of all the RNA molecules produced by a genome in an organism at a specific time.

What did you enjoy most about being an LCCF Intern?

I enjoyed the independence and trust that my mentors gave me throughout the internship. I expected it to feel like a classroom, but it didn’t. I felt like a professional who was being trusted to do a job, which boosted my confidence.

How will the LCCF Internship help you move forward in your career?

I learned the technical skills that I need to move forward in my career post-graduation. If I hadn’t completed this internship, I would have left college without computer science skills, which would have put me at a disadvantage when it came to trying to get a job offer or a graduate school acceptance letter in computational biology.

How did your background prepare you for this opportunity?

Molecular biology is the fundamental basis of computational biology; going into this internship with that base level knowledge was quite helpful.

Why should others apply to the program?

From undergraduate students and graduate students to current professionals seeking a career change, this program is rich in opportunities. No matter your background, you will leave this internship feeling empowered and will have the skills to succeed in any technical career.

Shan Jiang

Mentorship Group: TACC Evaluation Services Team

Mentor(s): Stephanie Baker, Gabriel Jaffe, Lisa Garbrecht

Why did you apply for the NSF LCCF Internship?

My experience using TACC systems in on-campus coursework gave me a strong appreciation for powerful computing platforms that balance productivity and innovation. I was excited to go beyond being a user of leadership-class systems and directly contribute to improving them for the greater research community.

What project(s) did you work on during your time as an LCCF Intern?

My project focused on developing AI agents to efficiently classify and analyze massive K-12 education survey datasets, thereby improving the evaluation of user feedback from TACC-supported programs. Our technical approach involved deploying large language models locally on GPU clusters and designing a multi-agent workflow with validation steps to compare AI-generated results against human-labeled data.

What did you enjoy most about being an LCCF Intern?

I am thankful for the supportive and collaborative environment at TACC. The mentors and program coordinators provided constructive feedback and assistance.

How will the LCCF Internship help you move forward in your career?

This experience was exactly what I needed to bridge the gap between AI theory and real-world implementation. Deploying LLMs and AI agents across HPC clusters provided practical skills that are difficult to acquire. This experience has prepared me for advanced roles in research labs and leading technology companies, where AI has become a central focus.

How did your background prepare you for this opportunity?

My history in computational mathematics provided a strong foundation in scientific computing. I also benefited from relevant coursework and training offered by TACC experts that are open to the broader community. These experiences introduced me to high performance computing and parallel computing and sparked my interest in the field.

Why should others apply to the program?

The internship welcomes students from a wide range of backgrounds and does not require narrowly defined prerequisites. With access to advanced computing resources and guidance from TACC experts, interns are well supported and able to grow quickly. If you are interested in the research directions supported by TACC, this is an opportunity you should not miss.

Sebastián Hernández Sterling

Mentorship Group: Decision Support Office

Mentor(s): William Mobley

Why did you apply for the NSF LCCF Internship?

I found the LCCF program on the NSF platform and saw a great opportunity to gain new work and academic experience but also to improve my soft skills. While filling out the application, I researched previous interns and discovered many of the program’s advantages.

What project(s) did you work on during your time as an LCCF Intern?

I worked on two primary projects, along with several smaller initiatives, including contributions to open-source software. My first major project involved developing an AI agent to extract structured insights from unstructured data. The second focused on building a client–server application to collect and upload meteorological metrics from IoT devices, supporting scalable data ingestion and analysis.

What did you enjoy most about being an LCCF Intern?

I enjoyed the freedom I had to explore various work methods and schedules while still being expected to deliver results. TACC’s collaborative environment was very beneficial to my development, along with the invaluable professional development workshops.

How will the LCCF Internship help you move forward in your career?

The technical and soft skills I’ve gained in this program months will help me as I chart my future. Thanks to the workshops and the requirement to present our work, I improved my communication skills and gained confidence in my abilities.

How did your background prepare you for this opportunity?

Much of my knowledge and personal interests aligned with the assigned projects. I utilized technologies I was already familiar with to develop the projects, become more efficient, and achieve better results.

Why should others apply to the program?

The internship is a comprehensive program that, although not a typical corporate job, gives you the opportunity to grow in other equally valuable ways and provides the flexibility in scheduling that a university student needs.