Internships provide students with the opportunity to experience what a career in Environmental Studies may be like. Students in the Environmental Studies major are required to complete an internship or a thesis. Environmental Studies majors have also gone on to exciting careers with many of these employers.

Natural Resource Management Jobs and Internships in the Public Sector

Each summer the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources hires around 200 student interns and they have hired many BSU students to: survey fish, assess river and lake health, work as interpretive naturalists at state parks, band waterfowl, manage wildlife, dive to survey and monitor for mussels, inspect for aquatic invasive species and manage forests. These positions are posted at the .

GIS and forestry internships with and .

If you want to be a DNR conservation officer and the deadline is usually the end of January.

Students have worked for county Soil and Water Conservation Districts across the state. The have a website where they post internship and job positions on a regular basis.

The (MPCA) has hired students to help them complete their annual water quality assessments. The local MPCA office is located in Brainerd and students will travel all over Northern Minnesota.

and the Grand Portage Tribe have hired interns for a variety of conservation responsibilities including exotic/invasive plant management, wildlife acoustic monitoring, tree planting and basic wildland firefighting.

The . This program is part of the aquatic division of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. In this program you will provide educational programs 4-5 times a week for three months to many different types of youth aged groups. The programs include education on aquatic invertebrates, fish families and fishing. You will have the opportunity to travel to many different locations in Minnesota.

We have had students do a variety of internships with the . There are positions all across the US, doing a large variety of outdoor things.

The National Resource Conservation Service offers a for current students and recent graduates.

Particular Counties That Have Hired Students in the Past Include

  • where students did aquatic invasive species reconnaissance and treatment once AIS were discovered.
  • has hired students to ground truth LIDAR data using GIS. This internship involves a lot time in the woods locating timber stands.
  • and and offer internships that do a variety of conservation activities.
  • , where students worked to implement the Federal Farm Bill.
  • has also hired BSU graduates.
  • In the Detroit Lakes area t has done a lot of work on their impaired water quality.

Natural Resource Management Jobs and Internships in the Private Sector

Students who are interested in STEM education have gotten internships with the .

near Finland, MN offers a variety of naturalist positions.

The offers longer term opportunities. For college age students you will be leading a group of high school age students. They offer stipends and tuition assistant, so make sure this payment schedule works for your situation.

has asked for interns in the past. Many of these internships are in collaboration with county Soil and Water Conservation Districts and may involve GIS analysis and mapping, landowner outreach and data entry and compilation, among other tasks. Find contact information at the Minnesota Forest Stewardship Council website.

Sustainability, Planning, Urban Development and Economic Development Internships

If you want to work in urban development the has internships.

, and also have internships.

The City of Minneapolis has an which the Parks Department uses this program to hire interns.

Industry Jobs and Internships

has hired GIS professionals for both internships and jobs.

in Detroit Lakes is owned by a BSU alum and offers internships that involve both lab and field positions.

The household hazardous waste handling facility in Fosston has hired multiple students. The work is very physical, dirty, involves long hours in the sun, lots of travel and you will need to be able to drive a forklift. Contact Randy Bodensteiner for more information.

If you are interested in terrestrial restoration, often has seasonal positions.

Students interested in developing native plant identification skills and learning restoration techniques. can send their resume to jobs@naturalshore.com. hires a variety of seasonal positions in March every year. These positions are great opportunities for college students (Freshmen through recent graduates).
All of the seasonal positions have the potential for long term employment with Natural Shore Technologies company, who also work closely alongside cities and watershed districts in the area, making this a good opportunity for students who are interested in making connections to develop relationships with these entities as well.
This season, Natural Shore Technologies is also hiring for a salaried lead position, which would be best for recent graduates.

Other companies that have offered students positions include: , , , , , and

Summer Research Experience

For students who are interested in graduate school we recommend that they pursue a summer research opportunity. The National Science Foundation offers (REU) at major research institution around the country. As students in CSS pursue sustainability through a variety of disciplines, many different categories of research internship may apply. Of particular interest may be the: , , , , and the For those that want to . If you are not finding what you are looking for, please check out the Most of these programs have a due date in February or March and check the program that interests you for the specific application deadline.