This webpage gives some examples of activities that Federal agencies have engaged in or funded in order to create a quantum-smart workforce for tomorrow. At the K-12 level, the activities include identifying quantum information science and technology (QIST) concepts and integrating them into existing K-12 courses, developing and curating approachable quantum lessons and activities, providing professional development for teachers, and engaging in public outreach about QIST and QIST careers. For undergraduate and graduate students, the activities increasingly involve scholarships, fellowships, and research opportunities, while providing additional on-ramps to QIST through summer schools. For postdoctoral scholars and professionals, activities include fellowships, summer schools, agency core research programs, and funding for early career researchers. This list provides a small sample of the breadth of activities, and more information can be found on agency websites.
A Factsheet on Federal Workforce Activities in QIS contains many of the same activities.
For more information about how the National Quantum Initiative is building the necessary talent pathways and ensuring that QIS creates new opportunities for all Americans, please see the parent page on Enabling People.
K-12
- Q-12 Education Partnership of industry, academia, and government (OSTP & NSF spearheaded)
- Workshop on nine Key Concepts for Future QIS Learners (NSF funded)
- Frameworks for including QIS topics in high school physics, computer science, math, and chemistry courses (NSF funded)
- Classroom activities (e.g., Q-12 QuanTime)
- Professional development for teachers (e.g., NSF-funded Quantum for All and QuEST)
- Videos about quantum careers (e.g., for World Quantum Day, Q-12 Careers)
- High school summer internships at Government Labs (e.g., NIST SHIP) and universities (e.g., ARO High School Apprenticeship Program)
- Summer schools
- National QIS Centers
- AFRL Quantum STEM Summer Camp
- NSF-funded Quantum for All and QuEST for teachers and students
- DOE-supported QCamp for teachers and students
UNDERGRADUATE
- Scholarships (e.g., DOD SMART)
- Curriculum development (e.g., NSF-funded QuSTEAM)
- Summer research
- Summer schools (e.g., LPS Qubit Collaboratory, NSF-funded STAQ Virtual School)
GRADUATE
- Fellowships
- LPS Quantum Research Fellowships
- DOD SMART
- DOD National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship
- DOE Computational Science Graduate Fellowship
- and funding through academic Principal Investigators
- Research at
- National QIS Research Centers (NSF, DOE, DOD, NSA)
- Government labs (e.g., NIST, NASA, LPS, DOD), National Labs (DOE)
- Joint research institutes (e.g., JILA, JQI, LPS, QuICS)
- Research with academic and industry partners (e.g., NSF QISE-NET)
- DOE-funded U.S. Quantum Information Science Summer School
- Summer schools and internships
- DOE LANL Summer School Fellowship
- DOE QSC Center
- DOE C2QA Center
- DOE Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internships (SULI) (open to students for two years after they complete a Bachelor’s degree)
POSTDOCTORAL
- Fellowships
- Summer schools and short courses
PROFESSIONAL
- Summer research at Government Labs
- Career fairs (e.g., DOE Centers QIS Career Fair)
- Funding university programs in QIST
- NSF Quantum Information Science focus areas
- DOE Office of Science Quantum Information Science initiatives
- DOD funded Quantum Sensing Center
- Funding for early career researchers
- DOE Early Career Research Program
- NSF Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER)
- NSF Launching Early-Career Academic Pathways in the Mathematical and Physical Sciences (LEAPS-MPS)
- DOD Young Investigator Programs (YIP) at ONR, AFOSR, ARL, and DARPA
- Summer schools (e.g., AFRL/RI Short Courses)