Water and Marine Related Internships
Elephant Seal Research
Listing also found in Research tab.
Contact: Patrick Robinson (Reserve manager) Patrick.robinson@ucsc.edu
Not Accepting Interns Until Winter 2024!
Come learn about northern elephant seals with an internship at the Año Nuevo UC Natural Reserve. Every year thousands of elephant seals haul out at Año Nuevo to molt and breed. Researchers from UCSC attach flipper tags to identify individual seals. We need your help to work with researchers to find and record information about these tagged seals. This decades-long study helps us understand the demographics of this population.
To apply for this internship, please fill out an application here!
Research Program
Listing also found in the Conservation and Research tabs.
Only available during the Summer!
Contact: Jake Todd, ccfrp@mlml.calstate.edu
CCFRP Interns gain insight into the world of marine science and valuable, hands-on experience for professional development through active participation in various forms of fieldwork, data analysis, and project support. Each summer, CCFRP conducts 12 fish sampling trips around the Monterey Bay area to survey two marine protected areas. Interns help to plan and prepare for these trips while also coming on the trips to assist with fish processing. Interns may also provide organizational, logistical, and administrative assistance to the overall Fisheries and Conservation Biology Lab at Moss Landing Marine Laboratories if opportunities with other projects are available. This unpaid summer internship is open to both undergraduate students and recent graduates.
Applications will be accepted until April 19, 2023.
For more information and to request an application, please email mlml-ccfrp@sjsu.edu.
For more information, visit the California Collaborative Fisheries Research Program's website.
Science and Restoration internship
Listing also found in Public Policy tabs.
Contact: Kevin O'Connor, kevin.oconnor@sjsu.edu
The Central Coast Wetlands Group is an affiliate research group at Moss Landing Marine Labs focused on the study, preservation, and restoration of wetlands. We work closely with regional and state partners to improve wetland science communication between researchers, resource managers and policy makers. We do this through on the ground research and restoration, the development and dissemination of tools and materials, and through organizing and hosting meetings and symposia that bring groups of people together to increase dialogue.
We are interested in hosting interns with the right fit for our organization. We seek an intern who is self-motivated, has clear goals, and has a sound scientific background. Due to these requirements, we prefer students who have completed at least 2 years of undergraduate courses.
The intern would assist with scientific research and monitoring of water quality treatment wetlands and local watersheds. Data analysis and management and other office work that may be needed. They may also be involved in restoration activities including out-planting, weed control, and habitat monitoring. The balance of these various duties would depend on the season and the need, as well as the abilities and interest of the intern.
Our office is located in Moss Landing, CA, about half an hour south of Santa Cruz. The intern would have to provide their own transportation to Moss Landing.
Ecological Aquaculture Research
Contact Person: Pallab Sarker, psarker@ucsc.edu
Kapuscinski-Sarker Lab Ecological Aquaculture Research Internship
Contacts:
Lab co-director, Associate Research Professor Pallab Sarker psarker@ucsc.edu
Lab co-director, Professor Anne Kapuscinski akapusci@ucsc.edu
Aquaculture is the world’s fastest growing food sector and essential is for food security of over 1 billion resource-poor people. Conventional aquaculture diets use fishmeal and fish oil extracted from ocean-caught fish, like sardines and herring, but most of these ‘forage fish’ are edible by people and important prey for higher-trophic marine fish like tuna. About 20% of world fish catches in 2017 were used to manufacture fishmeal and fish oil and this scale of production undermines marine biodiversity, threatens food security of coastal peoples who traditionally eat these forage fish. Rising demand for fishmeal and fish oil and competition for higher value uses such as human fish oil capsules has caused price volatility problems.
The Kapuscinski - Sarker lab in the ENVS dept is working to replace fishmeal and fish oil in conventional feeds with microalgae. Our recirculating aquaculture systems in the new aquaculture greenhouse at the CASFS farm is prepared to get live rainbow trout for digestibility and growth experiments. During the pandemic, the intern will work in a hybrid model (partly at CASFS aquaculture greenhouse and partly remote). When working at the aquaculture greenhouse, the intern will strictly follow Covid 19 safety guidelines that have been put in place. Thus, prior to work at aquaculture greenhouse, the intern will receive UCSC covid 19 safety training, as well as other lab safety and fish care training. The intern will assist the team to carry out digestibility experiments to assess suitability of novel feed ingredients for potential inclusion into diets (nutritionally complete pellets) for farmed rainbow trout. We are also interested to use water from our recirculating aquaculture systems to provide nutrient-beneficial water for crop irrigation on the CASFS farm.
NOTE: Students are setting up and taking water quality parameters in the ecological aquaculture greenhouse
Tasks may include but are not limited to maintaining recirculating water aquaculture systems, fecal collection, feed making, daily fish care, water chemistry testing, fecal analysis, and the maintenance of the greenhouse that contains our research systems. We will expect the intern to contribute to accurate record keeping, data collection, develop SOPs, data entry and organization, and report writing. Successful applicants should have a proven track record of detail oriented work, hold a personal interest in the work to be carried out and be willing to learn on the fly. https://kapsar.sites.ucsc.edu
Research Internship
Aquafeed Decision-support Tool / Open-source Software Development
Research Internship –Suitable for Remote only Work (Zoom meetings, own computer)
Contact:
Professor Anne Kapuscinski akapusci@ucsc.edu Postdoctoral Scholar, Brandi McKuin bmckuin@ucsc.edu
Aquaculture is the world’s fastest growing food sector and essential is for food security of over 1 billion resource-poor people. Conventional aquaculture diets use fishmeal and fish oil extracted from ocean-caught fish, like sardines and herring, but most of these ‘forage fish’ are edible by people and important prey for higher-trophic marine fish like tuna. About 20% of world fish catches in 2017 were used to manufacture fishmeal and fish oil and this scale of production undermines marine biodiversity, threatens food security of coastal peoples who traditionally eat these forage fish. Rising demand for fishmeal and fish oil and competition for higher value uses such as human fish oil capsules has caused price volatility problems. Novel ingredients (e.g. microalgae, single cell proteins, and insect meals) are emerging as potential substitutes for fish meal and fish oil, however, the economic and environmental impact of these alternative ingredients is unclear.
The Kapuscinski - Sarker lab in the ENVS dept is working to evaluate the economic and environmental impact of replacing fishmeal and fish oil in conventional feeds with novel ingredients such as microalgae, single cell proteins, and insect meals by developing an aquafeed decision-support tool. Interns will assist the team to develop an open-source software to assess suitability of novel feed ingredients for potential inclusion into diets for farmed fish.
Tasks may include but are not limited to review and synthesis of peer-reviewed literature as inputs to the software databases (e.g. environmental impacts, economic impacts, and feed conversion ratio), calculation of environmental impacts using life cycle assessment, calculation of economic impacts using techno-economic analysis, optimization code development for the open-source software, and website development to host the software. Interns will be expected to contribute to accurate record keeping, data collection, data entry and organization, and report writing. Successful applicants should have a proven track record of detail oriented work, quantitative skills, hold a personal interest in the work to be carried out, and be willing to learn on the fly. We will provide training to interested applicants.
Intern with Conservation Photographer
Listing also found in For-Profit Business tab.Contact: Marc Shargel; marc@lumigenic.com; 831-335-4849 Marc Shargel is a commercial nature photographer and marine conservation advocate. He has worked environmental NGO’s, and served on the Marine Life Protection Act Central Coast Regional Stakeholder Group. Most recently he led the incorporation of a non-profit devoted to kelp forest restoration. He has published four books on the marine life of the California coast, see them online at https://www.LivingSeaimages.com/books. His online photo library now has 16,000 images. See https://livingseaimages. com/searchstock.php. We are looking for interns to help with all aspects of this business, including:- Organizing all aspects of public events: hanging photo shows, public relations and communications, etc.
An intern with skills in both marine biology and database management can work on:- Keeping our online library current, our biological identifications accurate, and the uploads to our image library up to date.
Someone with a mind for marketing can help with:- Getting our imagery in front of photo editors, getting our products (books, notecards and prints) placed in retail outlets, and managing those relationships.
An intern interested in digital photography can- Use Lightroom (or equivalent software) and perhaps Photoshop to prepare images for web display.
In addition to the skills required to do the above, our interns have the opportunity to learn the artistic and technical aspects of photography if they wish.Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary Exploration Center
Preschool Storytime Internship
Contact: Becky Gustafson, explorationcenter@noaa.gov
The Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary is looking for a weekly
intern who will assist in the coordination and delivery of our Preschool
Storytime program. Duties will include:- Assist in the coordination of a weekly preschool activity time for the
Sanctuary Exploration Center - Help setup and lead weekly crafts, including program advertising
- Work in the gift shop and front desk when needed, and assist with
public events
- Assist in the coordination of a weekly preschool activity time for the
Exhibit Interpreter Internship
Contact: Becky Gustafson, explorationcenter@noaa.gov
Join to be a docent at the Sanctuary Exploration Center
Attend our docent training Tuesday evenings from April 11 through May 23.
Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary is part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The Sanctuary Exploration Center in Santa Cruz is a visitor center that educates the public about
our sanctuary. Interns will be trained as Docents who welcome visitors and interpret our exhibits to them.
Interns will also assist with exhibit pop-ups and work with the Volunteer Coordinator to improve current exhibits to engage visitors better.Skills include An interest in the natural world, teaching, and environmental enthusiasm. Enjoy interacting with the public and being a proactive, dependable, and responsible team member. A background in ocean science, marine biology, or environmental science is preferred but not required. You must be willing to spend the effort
necessary to learn the appropriate material. Internship requirements: Attend docent training. Work one 3.25-hour shift a week after training. Shifts are 9:45 a.m.– 1:00 p.m. or 12:45 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Wednesday – Sunday.Our requirements for docents are to work a minimum of twice a month, up to once a week for a 3.25-hour shift where they welcome visitors, interpret exhibits, and engage visitors in ocean conservation and education. Volunteers also receive enrichments throughout the year, which include science talks and field trips.
Field Trip Program
Contact: Becky Gustafson, explorationcenter@noaa.gov
The Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary is looking for a weekly
intern who will assist with our Field Trip programs. Duties will include:- Assist in the setup and tear-down of field trip activities
- Help with general crowd control and supervision of students
- Work in the gift shop and front desk when needed
Natural Bridges State Beach
Contact: Martha Nitzberg, naturalbridges@ports-ca.us (831)-423-0871
Have you ever imagined yourself as an environmental educator? In such a role, you can become a bridge between people and place and a facilitator of connective experiences in nature. At Natural Bridges, we have a spring internship that offers environmental interpretation and environmental education training. In Fall, we offer monarch butterfly environmental education internships. In particular, you will learn to lead school group tours of the tide pools in our State Marine Reserve on weekdays and to the public on weekends. We look forward to meeting you!
Students can apply with this link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfsM1RoRBz-DGYBLminnZzN13-A_yzhG7Y7ms1H45BycRmOZA/viewform
Ecological Research Internship
Contact: Cynthia Kern, cynthia.kern@noaa.gov
Quarterly internships are available to work with the National Marine Fisheries Service in Santa Cruz. Students will play a key role in conducting ecological research on central coast steelhead and coho salmon. Research and monitoring efforts are conducted primarily in Scott Creek (northern Santa Cruz County). Interns time will be split between field and lab work, including but not limited to, learning species ID, animal tagging, data recording and entry, and gear maintenance (50%-50%, but depends on the season).
Rockfish Early Life History Internship
Contact: Neosha Kashef, neosha.kashef@noaa.govQuarterly internships are available to work with the NOAA Fisheries Service in Santa Cruz. Students will be involved with studying the early life history of rockfishes. Projects vary by quarter but include studying reproduction and fecundity, larval and juvenile age and growth, and larval swimming ability. Interns will primarily be in the laboratory although there are occasional opportunities for field work
Oceans 360 Internship
Contact: Steve Mandel, steve@oceans360.org, (831)-234-5566
We are an ocean conservation education 501(c)(3) nonprofit, that uses virtual reality to communicate the need for reduction of ocean plastics, encourage sustainable use of ocean resources and work on global warming and its effect on coral.
For more info, visit their website!
Oceanseed Project Internship
Listing also found in the Environmental Education tab.
Contact: Dominic P. Renda, buzz@oceanseedproject.org (831) 325-7048
Oceanseed Project is a science-based, results-oriented, environmental non-profit providing access, insight, inspiration, developmental empowerment and new possibilities to at-risk youth. Oceanseed Project transforms our natural world by providing vulnerable children access to the oceans, beaches, estuaries and watersheds accompanied with mentorship and a student-centered curriculum in the humanities and sciences that compliment Common Core education standards. In establishing their direct connection with nature, our children discover a world of new possibilities; forever improving the trajectory of their lives and that of our world. An Oceanseed Project internship provides participant student team members with the opportunity for direct hands on access, experience and professional business education in environmental entrepreneurism, conservation and education including; federal and state regulations, finance, marketing, programs, operations and field work. Oceanseed Project interns are provided guidance and supervision in strategic areas in support of our mission, yet given the freedom and encouragement to truly make it their own.
USGS-UCSC Cooperative Sea Otter Research
Listing also found in Research tab.
Contact person: Sarah Espinosa smespino@ucsc.edu
Research on sea otters is mandated by the U.S. Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act. For California, this research is the responsibility of the USGS Western Ecological Research Center. The research program is headquartered at the Santa Cruz Field Station, whose offices are located at the Center for Ocean Health at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Interns will be trained to participate in radio tracking studies of sea otter behavior and population dynamics. Specific duties include visiting locations throughout the study area by vehicle in order to record the location and reproductive status of tagged study animals. Otters will be located using radio receivers attached to an antenna, and identified using high powered spotting telescopes. Interns will record the exact position of individual otters using GPS and rangefinders. Other data recorded will include number of other otters sighted with the study animal, reproductive status (whether or not females have pups), behavioral states, and environmental conditions. Resights for each study animal will be obtained each day, weather permitting. Interns may also assist with capture/tagging operations, and have opportunities for boat-based work.
Please send a cover letter and resume/CV to werc@ucsc.edu.
School Programs Teaching & Project Intern
Listing also found in the Environmental Education tab.
Contact: Volunteer Coordinator, volunteers@ucsc.edu
The Seymour Marine Discovery Center is dedicated to educating people about the role scientific research plays in understanding and conserving our world's oceans. Volunteer Teaching & Project Interns become part of our outstanding and inspiring team of School Programs Instructors who lead engaging, hands-on, marine science activities for school groups on field trips at the Seymour Center. Gain valuable knowledge and experience as a science educator through teaching a variety of marine science concepts to students ranging in age from kindergarten to community college. Learn to lead outdoor tours to Long Marine Lab’s blue and gray whale skeletons, marine mammal research overlook, invertebrate touch pools, and more.
School Programs Teaching & Project interns must complete the Seymour Center School Programs Instructor training and commit to volunteering at least two to three quarters (three quarter commitments receive internship preference). Internship course credit can be earned after completing one or more quarters as a volunteer in good standing.
Learn more about Seymour Center school programs and apply for an internship on the Seymour Center website.
Seymour Center Docent Training Intern
Listing also found in the Environmental Education tab.
Contact: Volunteer Coordinator, volunteers@ucsc.edu
The Seymour Marine Discovery Center at Long Marine Lab hires a Visitor Programs Docent Training Intern each winter quarter. Responsibilities include working with the Visitor Programs Manager to develop teaching materials for the docent training course held at the Seymour Center from January - March. The intern will help set-up the room before each training starts, record lectures, upload videos to a training website, take notes, help clean up the classroom after each training, and many other various tasks. The intern must also create a presentation and present a selected marine science topic to the docent training class.Docent training volunteer and internship applications will become available in October 2023.
The Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District is seeking interested applicants for our Wildlife Biology and Water Quality Internship.
The responsibilities of the intern will include surveying for and identifying wildlife species in the field, operating wildlife camera traps and managing photo data, monitoring bird box nesting activity, GIS mapping, measuring water quality and modeling pond water budgets, assisting with research and consultant work, and collecting and organizing data on spreadsheets and in databases. Work duties will provide training in a broad range of natural resource management techniques, environmental analysis, habitats, and tools.
This is a paid, temporary internship. Application closing date is 2/26/23.
See the position posting for more details: Wildlife Biology & Water Quality Intern | CalOpps
Please distribute this opportunity within your organization, and forward to others who may be interested. Feel free to contact myself or our HR department (hr@openspace.org) with questions.
Ano Nuevo Reserve
California Collaborative Fisheries (CCFRP)
Central Coast Wetlands Group at Moss Landing Marine Labs
Kapuscinski-Sarker Lab
Kapuscinski-Sarker Lab
Marc Shargel, Living Sea Images
Natural Bridges State Beach
NOAA
Oceans 360
Oceanseed
USGS-UCSC Cooperative Sea Otter Research
Seymour Marine Discovery Center
Wildlife Biology and Water Quality
