Â鶹´«Ã½

 
 

Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences

Faculty of Science

Internships

Through Environmental Science internships, students gain hands-on experience while pursuing questions of personal and academic interest relevant to their field. At the end of the term, they give a presentation about what they’ve learned. 

In this course, students volunteer on a specific project at a host organization, for a minimum of six hours per week over a 12-week period. The internships are guided and evaluated by a supervisor at the host organization and by an advisor at Â鶹´«Ã½.

Notes:
To arrange a placement and ensure it meets University standards, it is the student’s responsibility to consult with the Intership Course Instructor at least three weeks prior to the term in which the internship will take place.

Prequisites:
Open ONLY to students who have declared an Honours/Major/Double Major in Environmental Science or a Minor/Concentration in Environmental Studies.


Contact:
Tel.: 902.494.7117
Email: envs.internship@dal.ca

Considering an internship

So you want to do an internship...

The Internship Class is intended to allow students to gain hands-on experience while addressing academic and personal interests relevant to the field of environmental science. Students volunteer as interns for 12 weeks (a minimum of six hours each week) on a specific project at a host organization, department or agency. The internship is guided and evaluated by a supervisor at the host organization and the course instructor at Â鶹´«Ã½. Each student will be asked to reflect on their internship and make a presentation at the end of the term.

Procedures Before the Internship Semester


Initial Contact

  • The student must contact the Environmental Science Internship Coordinator (envs.internship@dal.ca) with their interest in enrolling in ENVS 3000.03 at least 6 weeks before the term in which she/he wishes to commence a placement
  • The student and Environmental Science Internship Coordinator will then meet (in person or electronically) to determine the student’s eligibility for the course and internship interests

Determination of Placement

  • In the case where a student has an internship placement in mind, the Environmental Science Internship Coordinator will review the potential placement with the student in order to determine the appropriateness of the placement.
  • In the case where a student does not have a specific internship placement in mind, the Environmental Science Internship Coordinator will put the student in touch with a potential sponsoring agency based on his/her interests.

Establishing Details of Internship

  • The student works with the potential sponsoring agency and the Environmental Science Internship Coordinator to determine (a) the nature of the internship, and (b) the most appropriate supervisor at the agency
  • The student takes the responsibility for completing and getting the appropriate signatures for the Environmental Science Internship ()

Procedure During the Internship Semester

  • The student will submit the signed Environmental Science Internship contract form within 2 weeks of the beginning of the semester.
  • The student will work as an intern for 12 weeks (at a minimum of 6 hours per week) on a specific project within the sponsoring agency. 
  • The student will submit weekly journal entries to the Environmental Science Internship Coordinator through Brightspace
  • The student will complete all assignments related to the course within a reasonable time (as detailed in the course syllabus)

Information for Internship Hosts

The Environmental Science Student Internship is designed:

  • To give a student a meaningful opportunity to gain experience in the field of environmental science in a supervised learning context
  • To give a student an opportunity to work on a specific project related to the field of environmental science.
  • To give a student an opportunity to reflect on practice and to present lessons learned at the end of the term

Students work as interns for 12 weeks (at a minimum of 6 hours per week) on a specific project within your organization.  The student will receive guidance from you as the sponsoring agency supervisor, as well as the Environmental Science Internship Coordinator at Â鶹´«Ã½.

We appreciate the opportunity to partner with your organization and hope that this arrangement will be mutually beneficial. Please contact the Â鶹´«Ã½ Environmental Science Internship Coordinator should you have any questions about the Environmental Science Program or this internship course either by phone: 902.494.7117 or email: envs.internship@dal.ca.

Past interns and projects

Students have taken on internships since 2005 with a variety of organizations. The table below lists some examples of past interns and their projects:
 

Year Student Sponsoring Agency Project
2023  Eric Lindsay Natural Forces Wind Compiled a report on company sustainability and ongoing wind energy research
2023 Kiah Heneke-Flindall Hope Blooms Development of a Green Labs (Renewable Energy and Agriculture) Program for Children (aged 8-12)
2020 Nan Chen Â鶹´«Ã½ Ocean Frontier Institute Organization of Seminar Programs for the Atlantic Ocean Graduate Network (AGON)
2020 Amy Frost-Wicks Sierra Club Development of an Educational  for the Watch for Wildlife Program
2020 Meg MacKay Afficianado Creating Supplier Spotlights for the Afishionado Website
2019 Thomas Harrison Dal Office of Sustainability Green Labs: Developing and Maintaining an Inventory of Â鶹´«Ã½'s Lab Equipment
2016 Emily Febrey Clean Nova Scotia Student Intern- Sustainability Education Department
2016 Pitchakon Padungdetpasuton Sierra Club Canada Foundation Development of a researched outreach document on the impacts of the Donkin Coal mine
2016 Josh Pye ECELAW Supporting ECELAW staff in researching National Energy Board public consultation process
2016 Tyson Shushkewich McIntosh Run Watershed Association Comparison study looking at invertebrates present in the river
2016 Sarah Sutton Global Vision International Marine Conservation Intern learning to identify the various species and learning how to take measurements underwater as well as an introduction to marine conservation
2016 Caitlin Tonner SILK Lab Research Associate analyzing global positioning system tracking data;  qualitative coding interview transcripts; integration analysis of qualitative interview and GPS tracking data; publication writing
2015 Rylie Arnell Sierra Club Atlantic Helping research the impacts of shipping in the Gulf of St. Lawrence on Blue Whales
2015 Caitlin Carmichael Ecology Action Centre

Micro-Energy and Green Building Communications Office handling the outreach, logistics and publicity for the Groucho Fractal shows
2015 Camille Dumulon-Lauziere Atlantic Chapter Sierra Club Work on developing environmental education program. writing op-ed and creating awareness on environmental education
2015 Kathleen Short International Ocean Institute Deputy Simulation Coordinator assisting with the simulation development before and during the training programme
2014 Brogan Curruthers Â鶹´«Ã½ School of Resource and Environmental Studies Helping research the contribution of pollinators in food production, sustainable food practices and the use of LCA in analyzing food systems