Environmental Studies

Internships

Every student, in every academic major, is encouraged to gain professional experience in their field of interest during their time at Eckerd. Students may pursue internships independently, as part of coursework for a particular class, or for course credit.

The purpose of such internships is to:

• Help students decide what type of careers/graduate programs they might be interested in.
• Make students more competitive for jobs/graduate work.

If you would like to search for current internships in Environmental Studies, there are a number of resources available.  The Career Center has many resources to help students find opportunities that suit their interests. In particular, our Career Exploration page and Career Center Internship page include a variety of job, internship, and volunteer listings and general information on how to secure an internship. For an updated list of local opportunities or questions, contact Environmental Studies Internship Coordinator Dr. Dave Himmelfarb.

The possibilities are endless! Here are a few local organizations students have work with in the recent past:

• Boyd Hill Nature Park—environmental education and community outreach
• Eckerd College Office of Sustainability—environmental communication, recycling, energy use assessment
• Eckerd College Community Farm—sustainable vegetable production, landscape design
• Edible Peace Patch Project—environmental education, edible garden management
• Environmental Consulting Firms (various)—marine policy analyst, wetland delineation
• Florida Fish and Wildlife Research Institute—research on coastal wetlands, climate, and manatee conservation
• Lakewood High School—environmental science teaching assistant
• NOAA Fisheries—fisheries management analyst, ecotourism database, restoration program
• Seaside Seabird Sanctuary—bird rescue and release, veterinary care
• Tampa Bay Watch—environmental education, habitat restoration
• Terra Ceia Preserve State Park—invasive species removal, data management
• ZooTampa at Lowry Park—environmental education, graphic design, animal husbandry

Senior Intern Program

To graduate with an Environmental Studies degree from Eckerd College you need to complete a 70 hour internship either the summer before your senior year or during your senior year.

• It can be paid or unpaid, but it must be environmentally related and at a well recognized organization that will make sure you have a productive and safe internship.
• It can be called a job, internship, docent or volunteer activity.
• The internship must occur over a minimum of 2 weeks.
• Internships that start in the summer and continue into the fall are fine.
• You may not double count hours for this internship with service learning hours, or hours for other classes. If your internship goes longer than 70 hours, you can use the additional hours for other purposes.
• Internships completed during your first, sophomore, or junior year, while encouraged, cannot count as your senior internship.

1. Internship Approval
   Once you know what internship you want to do (either locally or elsewhere), please fill out the senior internship approval form. You will be asked: your name, name and location of internship, types of things you’d be doing, rough schedule, and internship supervisor contact information. If your internship entails international travel, you must also fill out the Independent International Travel Risk Management Plan form for the Office of Risk Management and Safety.
2. Letter of Introduction
   Please send this Letter to Internship Provider (via email or print it out) to your internship supervisor before or when you begin your internship.
3. Evaluation Online Form
   At the end of your internship, email your internship provider this link to an online evaluation form.
4. Journal/Hours
   You are on your own honor to work 70 hours, you don’t list the hours on Triton Track, just in your journal. While you are doing your internship, you need to keep a daily or weekly journal of your activities, hours worked, what you learned, and any problems/frustrations. In addition to your description of your what you did each day, you will have an introductory section where you talk about the internship you worked for and your role. At the end of the journal you should reflect on whether you would consider doing something similar as a career. I would write about 1-2 paragraphs / day worked. If you have an internship you are doing all summer, you can either just journal about your first 70 hours each day, or you can do weekly journal entries.You will upload your typed journal during the semester that you take senior comps. In addition to your description of your what you did each day, you will have an introductory section where you talk about the internship you worked for and your role. At the end of the journal you should reflect on whether you would consider doing something similar as a career.

Please talk to your Environmental Studies mentor or ES Internship Coordinator, Dr. Dave Himmelfarb, if you have any questions!