Building the Future of Nuclear Forensics: Student Engagement & Workforce Development

Our Mission:
To inspire and prepare students for careers in nuclear forensics and strengthen national security by creating a collaborative, educational ecosystem.

Key Strategies

Establish a Consortium
Form a collaboration between universities, national laboratories, and stakeholders for resource sharing, research, and student engagement.

Develop Specialized Curriculum
Design courses in nuclear forensics, data science, and high-performance computing, developed with national lab experts.

Student Internships & Research
Offer hands-on internships and fund research projects to give students real-world experience and contribute to national security.

Data Science & HPC Training
Provide workshops and seminars focused on applying data science and high-performance computing to forensic challenges.

Scholarships & Grants
Support outstanding students through financial aid, encouraging pursuit of careers in this vital field.

Collaborative Research
Facilitate joint projects between universities and labs to foster innovation and practical solutions.

Mentorship & Professional Development
Pair students with lab professionals and organize seminars on career paths, industry trends, and skill development.

Outreach & Recruitment
Promote programs at universities, career fairs, and online platforms to attract diverse and bright talent.

Continuous Evaluation
Monitor student outcomes and program feedback to ensure ongoing improvement and relevance.

CNF’s overarching theme is the research and development of enabling fundamental science and engineering for the processing, characterization, determination, and quantification of materials for use in nuclear forensics applications as well as human capital development to ensure the United States has the means to maintain a robust nuclear forensics capability.

Assessments of the U.S.’s national technical nuclear forensics capability has stressed the importance of maintaining and expanding the U.S. capabilities in nuclear forensics is important in deterring, preventing, and responding to a nuclear attack.

Current nonproliferation, forensics, and intelligence needs require not only a firm grasp of the most advanced techniques and technologies, but also the requisite imagination to develop new emerging, transformational technological forensics capabilities.