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Bluestaq Graduate Research Scholar - NDSU Partnership 

Full-Ride M.S./Ph.D. Sponsorship + Paid Summer Internship (Colorado Springs, CO) 

Bluestaq - a Colorado Springs leader in secure data ecosystems, graph technologies, natural language processing, and AI solutions for national security and defense customers, including the U.S. Space Force - is launching a full-ride graduate research sponsorship in partnership with North Dakota State University (NDSU). We are seeking motivated NDSU graduate students to conduct Bluestaq-defined research beginning Fall 2026, culminating in a paid summer internship at Bluestaq headquarters. 

Why This Program Matters 

This sponsorship connects academic research directly to national-security mission impact. As a Bluestaq Graduate Research Scholar, your work will: 

• Advance real capabilities in LLMs, knowledge graphs, NLP, and agentic AI used by defense and national-security customers. 
• Build a direct pipeline from sponsored academic research into hands-on delivery at Bluestaq. 
• Position you as part of a select, founding cohort of scholars at the leading edge of applied AI research. 

What You'll Do 

Fall 2026 Research Project 

• Conduct Bluestaq-defined research in one or more of the following focus areas: Large Language Models, Data Sourcing & Tagging, Knowledge Graph / Graph Store, Agentic AI, Natural Language Processing, and Prompt Engineering. 
• Work independently and with NDSU faculty advisors, with research direction and technical alignment provided by Bluestaq. 
• Bring genuine intellectual curiosity - while projects are Bluestaq-defined, student interest and alignment are valued in shaping the work. 

Summer 2027 Internship - Bluestaq HQ, Colorado Springs, CO 

• Complete a paid summer internship as a direct continuation of your sponsored research, delivering immediate mission impact. 
• Receive hands-on mentorship and real-world application experience in a fast-paced defense-tech environment.

Program Benefits 

• Full tuition, fees, stipend, and health insurance - funded for the complete duration of your M.S. or Ph.D. degree. 
• Summer internship compensation: 
  • MS students: $28-35/hr ($1,120-$1,400/week at 40 hrs)
  • PhD students: $34-42/hr ($1,360-$1,680/week at 40 hrs)

Qualifications and Requirements 

• Currently enrolled, or incoming, M.S. or Ph.D. student at North Dakota State University. 
• Target disciplines: Computer Science; Electrical & Computer Engineering; Industrial & Manufacturing Engineering; Mechanical Engineering; Software & Security Engineering (other aligned fields considered). 
• Strong academic record and genuine interest in applying AI/data to national-security challenges. 
• Selected through a joint Bluestaq/NDSU review process; a Bluestaq technical representative serves on the selection committee alongside NDSU faculty. 

Education 

• Enrollment in (or admission to) an M.S. or Ph.D. program at NDSU in a qualifying discipline is required. 

Clearance Requirement 

U.S. citizenship is required, and candidates must be eligible to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance. Supervising faculty must also meet citizenship and clearance requirements, as sponsored work involves Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) and pre-existing Bluestaq intellectual property. 

Location 

• Academic-year research is based at NDSU (Fargo, ND); mandatory summer internship placement is on-site at Bluestaq HQ, Colorado Springs, CO. 

Program Timeline 

• Fall 2026: Research project begins. 
• Summer 2027: Paid internship at Bluestaq HQ. 

Application deadline: August 31st, 2026

Intellectual Property
This is a standard industry-sponsored research arrangement: Bluestaq retains full ownership of all intellectual property developed under the sponsorship, consistent with students advancing the company's pre-existing IP portfolio.