Eli Lilly AI Data Engineering Intern (BS) Jobs 2026 – Indianapolis, IN
Eli Lilly and Company is hiring an AI Data Engineering Intern (BS) in Indianapolis, Indiana. This is a full-time, on-site summer internship within Lilly’s Advanced Intelligence & Research organization, supporting AI and data science initiatives in clinical development.
The internship is designed for Bachelor’s students who will have completed their Junior year by June 2027 and have hands-on experience with Python and SQL. The anticipated annualized compensation for the Bachelor’s-level position is $65,600.
AI Data Engineering Intern (BS) – Job Overview
| Details | Information |
|---|---|
| Company | Eli Lilly and Company |
| Job Title | AI Data Engineering Intern (BS) |
| Location | Indianapolis, Indiana, USA |
| Job Type | Full-Time Internship |
| Work Mode | On-Site |
| Job Requisition | R-110843 |
| Internship Duration | 12 continuous weeks |
| Education | Bachelor’s degree in a relevant technical field |
| Student Requirement | Must complete Junior year by June 2027 |
| Salary | $65,600 annually |
| Primary Skills | Python, SQL, Data Engineering |
| Cloud | AWS |
| Data Platform | Databricks |
| Data Processing | Spark / PySpark |
| Work Authorization | U.S. work authorization required |
| Sponsorship | Not available |
The official Lilly posting confirms that the position is based in Indianapolis, Indiana, is full-time and on-site, and carries requisition number R-110843.
About the AI Data Engineering Internship
The selected intern will join the Clinical and Development area within Lilly’s Advanced Intelligence & Research organization.
The team develops AI and data science solutions intended to support clinical development and decision-making throughout the drug development lifecycle.
Data engineering is a core part of this work because clinical development involves complex datasets, including:
- Standardized clinical trial data
- Real-world healthcare data
- Observational data
- Large volumes of unstructured information
- Sensitive and regulated data
The intern will work alongside experienced data engineers and machine learning engineers on a scoped project with real business impact.
Key Responsibilities
The AI Data Engineering Intern may work on the following activities:
- Design and build data pipelines.
- Ingest large and complex datasets.
- Transform and validate data.
- Develop data models for analytics and machine learning.
- Write production-quality Python and SQL.
- Work with relational databases.
- Apply data quality and validation practices.
- Use version control and code review processes.
- Develop automated testing workflows.
- Create technical documentation.
- Collaborate with data scientists.
- Work with machine learning engineers.
- Partner with clinical collaborators.
- Understand data requirements for AI and analytics applications.
- Present project findings and recommendations to senior leaders and stakeholders.
Clinical and Healthcare Data
One distinctive aspect of this internship is its connection to clinical development and life sciences.
Depending on the assigned project, interns may work with clinical trial data using industry-standard formats such as:
- CDISC SDTM
- ADaM
- Real-world healthcare data
- Observational healthcare data
- Clinical documents
- Study protocols
- Study reports
- Data used by AI models and applications
Experience with healthcare or clinical data is not listed as a basic requirement, but Lilly identifies interest or prior experience with healthcare, clinical, life sciences, sensitive, or regulated data as a useful additional qualification.
Python Programming Skills
Hands-on experience with Python is a basic qualification for this internship.
Interns are expected to use Python for data engineering tasks and contribute production-quality code.
Candidates should be comfortable with fundamental programming concepts and should ideally have experience using Python in academic projects, personal projects, coursework, or previous internships.
SQL Skills
Experience writing SQL is also required.
The position involves working with data stored in relational databases and building pipelines that transform data for analytics and AI applications.
Additional SQL experience, including:
- Joins
- Aggregations
- Query optimization
- SQL warehouses
- Large dataset processing
is listed among the preferred skills.
Databricks and Cloud Data Engineering
Familiarity with a cloud data platform such as Databricks is preferred.
Applicants may benefit from knowledge of:
- Databricks notebooks
- Lakehouse concepts
- Delta concepts
- SQL warehouses
- Databricks pipelines
The role provides an opportunity to apply these technologies to real data engineering projects.
AWS Cloud Skills
Exposure to a major cloud provider is preferred, particularly Amazon Web Services (AWS).
Examples specifically mentioned by Lilly include:
- Amazon S3
- AWS Glue
- AWS Lambda
Candidates do not necessarily need extensive professional cloud experience, but coursework or project exposure to cloud services can strengthen their preparation for this internship.
Spark and PySpark
Experience with Apache Spark, PySpark, or other distributed data processing workflows is also listed among the additional skills.
These technologies are useful when working with large datasets that cannot be efficiently processed using traditional single-machine approaches.
Git, Testing and CI/CD
Lilly expects interns to learn and apply professional software engineering practices.
Preferred experience includes:
- Git-based version control
- Code reviews
- Automated testing
- Continuous Integration
- Continuous Delivery
- Docker
These practices help ensure that data pipelines and applications are reliable, maintainable, and suitable for production environments.
Data Engineering and Database Knowledge
Candidates should have a foundational understanding of:
- Data structures
- Relational databases
- How data moves through systems
- Data warehousing
- Distributed systems
- Database internals
- Data quality
- Data validation
Coursework or project experience in these areas is specifically identified as useful for the internship.
Artificial Intelligence Experience
Because this is an AI Data Engineering internship, Lilly also encourages applicants who have previously used AI tools.
Relevant experience may include:
- Generative AI platforms
- AI-assisted research
- AI-assisted analytics
- Automation tools
- AI development tools
Lilly expects interns to use AI tools responsibly, with attention to accuracy, confidentiality, critical thinking, and ethical standards.
Basic Qualifications
To be considered for the internship, candidates must:
- Be currently enrolled in a Bachelor’s degree program.
- Be studying Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Data Science, Software Engineering, Information Systems, Statistics, Mathematics, or a closely related technical field.
- Have completed their Junior year by June 2027.
- Have hands-on experience programming in Python.
- Have experience writing SQL.
- Understand fundamental data structures.
- Understand relational databases.
- Understand how data moves through a system.
- Be authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis.
U.S. Work Authorization Requirement
This is an important eligibility condition.
Lilly states that qualified applicants must be authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis. Lilly will not provide work authorization or visa sponsorship for this role.
The posting specifically states that sponsorship is unavailable for categories including F-1 CPT, F-1 OPT, F-1 STEM OPT, J-1, H-1B, TN, O-1, E-3, H-1B1 and L-1.
Internship Duration
Lilly internships run for 12 continuous weeks during the summer.
During the internship, students are expected to contribute to the organization through a defined project while gaining practical experience in the pharmaceutical industry.
At the end of the internship, students present their:
- Project highlights
- Findings
- Recommendations
- Accomplishments
to senior leaders and stakeholders.
Mentorship and Professional Development
The internship includes opportunities for professional development and mentoring.
Lilly states that interns receive 1:1 mentoring from an experienced professional in their function.
The company also organizes activities such as:
- Sporting events
- Dinners
- Lunch-and-learn sessions
- Volunteer activities
- Professional development events
- Social activities
These programs are designed to give interns opportunities to learn about Lilly and develop professional skills.
Salary
The anticipated compensation for the Bachelor’s-level internship is:
$65,600 per year
This is an annualized figure for the position rather than an indication that a 12-week intern would receive $65,600 during the internship itself.
Lilly states that actual compensation can depend on education, experience, skills, and geographic location.
Benefits and Additional Perks
Eligible interns may receive access to several benefits and workplace programs.
The posting mentions:
- 1 week of paid time off during Lilly’s summer shutdown
- 1:1 professional mentoring
- Free parking at the work site
- Access to Lilly’s LIFE fitness center
- Bike garage
- Employee discounts
- Social and professional development activities
The posting also states that if relocation is required for the internship, Lilly will provide subsidized housing.
Who Can Apply?
This internship is particularly relevant to Bachelor’s students who will have completed their junior year by June 2027 and have an interest in data engineering, AI, machine learning, cloud computing, or healthcare technology.
Applicants should ideally have experience with:
- Python
- SQL
- Data structures
- Relational databases
- Data pipelines
- Databricks
- AWS
- Git
- Spark or PySpark
- Data quality
- Automated testing
- AI tools
However, several of these are listed as preferred or additional skills, while Python, SQL, foundational data knowledge, degree enrollment, junior-year completion, and U.S. work authorization are part of the basic qualifications.
How to Apply
Interested candidates can apply through the official Eli Lilly careers website.
Job Title: AI Data Engineering Intern (BS)
Location: Indianapolis, Indiana
Job Requisition: R-110843
Work Type: Full-Time, On-Site
Salary: $65,600 annually
APPLY ONLINE LINK : CLICK HERE
Applicants should review the official eligibility requirements carefully, particularly the June 2027 junior-year completion requirement and U.S. work authorization requirement, before submitting an application.
Conclusion
The Eli Lilly AI Data Engineering Intern (BS) position in Indianapolis provides undergraduate students with hands-on experience in data engineering, AI, cloud computing, clinical data, Python, SQL, Databricks, AWS, Spark and modern software engineering practices.
The internship lasts 12 continuous weeks during the summer, includes a scoped project with real business impact, mentoring and professional development opportunities, and carries an anticipated annualized salary of $65,600 for Bachelor’s-level interns.