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NOAA Fisheries' database of their student opportunities.
The Southeast Fisheries Science Center offers a variety of internship and volunteer opportunities.
The National Water Center Innovators Program Summer Institute is a seven-week experiential learning program that brings graduate students together with academic researchers, other professionals, and National Water Center staff. Students complete a research project with a capstone presentation and final project report. Most project teams have published their work in a scientific journal after the completion of the program.
Application period: Usually January to February.
Eligibility: M.S. and Ph.D. students enrolled in U.S. universities in hydrology or a related field.
Award: Travel expenses, meal stipend, accommodations, a $2500 honoraria.
The Hōkūala “Rising Star” Internship offers ocean-minded undergraduate students training in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) fields, practical shipboard and seagoing skills, career mentorship, and a chance to directly enter the federal workforce with NOAA. The first phase of this opportunity is an internship hosted by the Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center Young Scientist Opportunity.
The Chesapeake Research Consortium's (CRC) Chesapeake Student Recruitment, Early Advisement, and Mentoring (C-StREAM) program is focused on recruiting, advising, and mentoring college students from populations who have been historically excluded from the environmental field and are underrepresented in environmental research and management professions. The program focuses on careers that support the continued restoration of the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed, the Bay’s living resources, and the people who live and work within its bounty. C-StREAM Fellows have previously been hosted at the NOAA Chesapeake Bay Office in Annapolis and Oxford, Maryland, at the Chesapeake Bay Program Office offsite link in Annapolis, Maryland, and within CRC’s seven CRC academic member institutions offsite link.
- Award: C-StREAM Fellows receive stipend payments as well as funding to support housing and transportation needs, occasional internship related travel, and professional development activities.
- Eligibility: C-StREAM is intended for any continuing undergraduate, at any level of study (including seniors pursuing graduate studies in the fall) who identifies as a person of color and/or a first-generation college student.
- Application period: Applications are solicited annually between mid-December and mid-February of each academic year.
Sea Grant's Community Engaged Internship (CEI) is designed for undergraduate students from underrepresented and indigenous communities. The overarching goal of this internship program is to broaden participation in marine and coastal professions by providing training and mentorship to the next generation of scientists, decision makers and citizens.
The key components of this program are listed below, but details about specific internship opportunities will vary by Sea Grant program:
- On-the-ground learning experience through a 8-10-week internship over the summer months, including completion of a project that extends the knowledge of community stakeholders to address a coastal, marine or Great Lakes issue of environmental, economic and/or social importance, an participation in all CEI professional development and training opportunities
- Mentoring by Sea Grant professionals, Sea Grant funded researchers and Knauss Fellows
- Virtual professional development sessions
- Peer discussions with other interns in the cohort through virtual platforms
- A graduation ceremony to celebrate accomplishments, network with peers and other professionals
The NOAA Central Library offers a wide variety of internship and volunteer opportunities for students interested in library sciences, information management, or NOAA's mission. They have a variety of projects that will help students develop research, analytic, and technical skills. The NOAA Central Library often has internship openings as part of the Virtual Student Federal Service Internship Program, which is open in July. Please contact library.reference@
These opportunities are for NOAA's College-Supported Internship Program. NOAA partners with selected colleges to provide undergraduate students summer internship experience in science, policy, and science communication. You must be enrolled at a partner school to participate and apply through that school.
The Geosciences Bridge Program offers a 6- week paid internship for graduating high school students, particularly from underrepresented groups, planning to pursue careers in a field of geoscience. The interns:
- Reside in the UMES residence halls (housing and meals are provided), accompanied by trained resident assistants.
- Participate in lectures and field trips with hands-on activities in areas of geoscience such as atmospheric science, biogeochemistry, civil and environmental engineering, environmental science, marine biology, marine chemistry, marine geology, physical oceanography, remote sensing/GIS and related fields.
- Enroll in either College Algebra or Calculus I (dependent upon math placement test score) and Freshman Seminar course.
- Receive $500 per week, paid bi-weekly and reimbursement for travel to/from University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES).
Eligibility: High school seniors who are entering their first year of an undergraduate degree program in the fall. Must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident and have a minimum 2.7 GPA.
Important dates: Applications due in the spring of every year.
The CELC Aquaculture Initiative is designed to connect NOAA resources and experts and aquarium educators so that they can better communicate aquaculture science and issues to the public. The webinar series is a quarterly event, where various aquaculture experts talk about a variety of issues, from how seafood helps with public health to the science of breeding corals or saving an endangered mollusc. Anyone is welcome to attend, but this program is especially for informal educators.