To broaden the opportunities for Master of Science in Engineering (MSE) students in the Whiting School of Engineering, the Institute for NanoBioTechnology (INBT) collaborates with major industry partners to offer a credited and paid co-op opportunity to MSE students in the Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering (ChemBE), Materials Science and Engineering (MatSci), and Mechanical Engineering (MechE) programs. MSE students pursuing the essay-based track in these programs can apply to participate in the INBT Master’s Co-Op Program as an alternative to conducting research in JHU laboratories.

Participating students work on a master’s level project at a company in their field of study for six months and receive full-time pay and credits equivalent to a year of academic research. They also build their professional network and gain technical and non-technical skills that prepare them for a competitive job market. Please note that INBT staff will provide guidance and support, but students are responsible for securing their own co-op positions.

INBT Master’s Co-Op Program participants will have a corporate mentor and a faculty advisor to help them develop their goals and objectives for their project. At the end of their six months of work, students publish a master’s essay about their co-op assignment. They may also have the chance to present their work at a seminar or submit a journal publication in lieu of an essay.

The application deadline for the upcoming January – June 2026 cohort is October 1, 2025. Fill out the form at the “Apply” button below and submit two professional or academic letters of reference to inbtco-op@jh.edu if you want to participate. Early applications are always appreciated, and feel free to start applying to co-op positions at companies you’re interested in.

For more information, please check out the links below.

Apply
FAQs
Student Experiences

Benefits

  • Receive full time pay commensurate with your experience
  • Receive college credit equivalent to graduate-level research
  • Gain real work experience and build professional connections in the industry of your choice
  • Explore a career path and discover your true strengths and interests
  • The Co-Op can help you find an industry position that will serve your academic and career goals. However, you will still have the opportunity to practice job application skills, from designing a resume to participating in job interviews.

Eligibility

Johns Hopkins University master’s students in the Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering (ChemBE), Materials Science and Engineering (MatSci), and Mechanical Engineering (MechE) programs are eligible for INBT Master’s Co-Op. Students can join from the traditional master’s track or from a 5-year BS-MSE track. Both domestic and international students are eligible.

Application Process

Students are encouraged to start researching and applying to co-op positions at companies as soon as they know they want to participate in the program. INBT staff will support and help guide students towards opportunities after the internal interview process.

To apply:

  • Submit online application before deadline (April 1st for the July – December cohort, October 1st for the January – June cohort).
    • Earlier submissions are highly encouraged as they can help INBT staff plan ahead.
  • Submit two professional references to inbtco-op@jh.edu.
  • Interview with Co-Op program committee.

Participating Companies

Students are responsible for applying to the co-op position of their choice. Below please find a list of companies our students have completed successful co-op assignments. Please keep in mind many of these opportunities have different deadlines than those listed for the INBT Master’s Co-Op. Please reach out to us at inbtco-op@jh.edu if you have questions about applying to co-op positions.

BIOENGINEERING COMPANIES

OTHER ENGINEERING COMPANIES

Past Student Essays

Here a few examples of co-op master’s essays from each of the participating departments.

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Engineering Lipid Nanoparticles (LNPs) to Target and Deliver mRNA to the Lungs by Ching Shen Chan
Detecting Porcine Gelatin in 3D Harvested Mesenchymal Stem Cells by Elizabeth Chen
Implementing a Fully-Automatic RT-PCR Work-Cell for COVID-19 Diagnostic Testing by Peter Murray
Investigation of the added therapeutic potential of Clofazimine in combating antimicrobial resistance in Clostridium difficile by Sesha Charan Pasupuleti
Quantifying Heat Loss in an Industrial Condensate Network and Proposing Methods of Condensate Heat Reclamation for Cost and Energy Savings by Liwen Xia

Department of Mechanical Engineering
An Overview of Tooling Requirements for The Manufacturing of Class 8 Trucks by Shrey Jaiswal
Enhancing Guidewire Coupling in Balloon Catheters by Roberto Flores
Additive manufactured low carbon cementitious materials using low-value byproducts from biofuel production by Emmett Turner
Development And Performance Evaluation of Bone Adhesive for Metaphyseal Fracture Fixation by Aditya Bhide
Fretting Corrosion in Connectors for Mobile Robotics Applications by Pei Fu

Department of Materials Science and Engineering
Characterization of Poly(amidoamine) Functionalized Magnetic Microparticles as a DNA Extraction Mechanism in Diagnostic Assays by Khalid Elawad
Lab-Based Filtration System Improving Recovery and Reducing Time to Detection for Diagnosis of Sepsis by Andrew Beamesderfer
Isolation of bacteria from positive blood cultures by filtration to facilitate rapid identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing in sepsis diagnostics by Shirley Ng

Examples of Co-Op Projects

Chemistry R&D Co-Op for a multinational pharmaceutical company

  • Hands-on laboratory work, performing studies, and developing test methods and fixtures
  • Generating models and drawings in SolidWorks
  • Crafting and evaluating prototypes

Analytics Co-Op for a multinational pharmaceutical company

  • Collecting data, analyzing and applying machine learning techniques to derive insights
  • Building analytical applications that work with large data sets
  • Researching, piloting, and implementing a proprietary platform across multiple business units

Biologics Drug Discovery Co-Op for a large biotech company

  • Leveraging high throughput antibody production techniques and a combination of antibody characterization assays
  • Helping curate and optimize data for easy access, deep analysis, and AIML modeling

Mechanical Engineer Co-Op for a local manufacturing company

  • Designing and creating conduction-cooled components
  • Performing thermal simulations to ensure proper cooling of PCB assemblies

Engineering Co-Op for a regional manufacturing company

  • Performing engineering functions including engineering design documentation, product and process improvements, manufacturing support, and design validation
  • Creating new parametric 3D models, assemblies and 2D drawings in Autodesk Inventor

Contact

You may contact us at INBTCo-Op@jh.edu.