10 week Volunteer Internship Opportunities – UCSC Fort Ord Natural Reserve – Marina, CA
Opportunities start during the first week of April!
Available for UCSC, CSUMB, and any local University or Community College students! Carpool from UCSC to Marina CA is available!
Spring quarter starts March 31, 2025, and internships run through June 6! We have limited positions available, apply asap on the form below. List your Spring quarter availability and any skills and experience you may have.
Apply via Google Forms here: https://forms.gle/wqf8RuveD8rPvX3F9
UC Santa Cruz Fort Ord Natural Reserve (FONR) is a 600 acre reserve dedicated to research, education, and public service in Marina, CA. The reserve hosts unique maritime chaparral habitat, as well as grasslands, oak woodland, and coastal sagebrush scrub. UCSC FONR is one of 41 sites included in the statewide University of California Natural Reserve System.
Credit may be available through the UCSC ENVS internship office for UCSC students. We also welcome applicants from CSUMB and community colleges!
K-12 education/Reserve Stewardship – Thursdays
Students must have open availability from 8-3 Thursdays through Spring Quarter 2025 (let us know if special considerations need to be made and we might be flexible)
Help create experiential learning opportunities for hundreds of local elementary school students on field trips to UCSC Fort Ord Natural Reserve. Interns will lead hikes and help present natural history information over several weeks in Spring 2025. We have been hosting these trips, called “Nature Detectives” for over 10 years and everyone takes away great memories from the events! Interns will also have the opportunity to assist with reserve stewardship tasks on days where we are not facilitating field trips.
Herpetology Monitoring – Schedule TBD, Thursday or Friday availability preferred.
Get an introduction to Fort Ord Natural Reserve and check research pitfall arrays and coverboards. We will monitor a cover board and pitfall array network for amphibian and reptile species, while learning identification and safe handling techniques. This opportunity will involve lots of day long hiking around the reserve, data collection, and reptile handling on sandy reserve trails.
Interns may also help with K-12 field trips on the reserve on some days, as listed above.
Botanical Surveys/Restoration and Research Support – Schedule TBD, Wednesday or Friday Preferred
Help FONR staff complete rare plant surveys, restoration related monitoring, and support research and stewardship goals on the reserve. Botany, light construction, and other field experience preferred but not required.
Small Mammal Trapping Workshop
4 day workshop – (Camping is available and encouraged for the duration of the workshop)
Friday May 30, 2pm – Monday June 2, 12pm
Learn more about methods of biological monitoring of small mammal populations while assisting FONR staff in the setting and checking of Sherman traps on the reserve. This is a four day immersive session where you will learn safe handling techniques, regulations, and more about local natural history. We will meet mid-afternoon on Friday, and finish the workshop about 12 pm on Monday. Sessions start very early ( 7:00 am) with lots of free time throughout the day to explore the reserve.
For these workshops, camping on the reserve is available and encouraged! We have gear to borrow if you need it. This is a free opportunity, but you will need to provide your own meals if you camp.
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Apply via Google Forms here: https://forms.gle/wqf8RuveD8rPvX3F9
We also welcome applicants from CSUMB and community colleges!
Interested undergraduates may complete the form above to apply. Please be descriptive in your responses! Availability and previous experience determine selection. The internships require transportation to UCSC Fort Ord Natural Reserve in Marina, Ca. which is about 45 minutes – 1 hour drive from UCSC Campus. Carpool may be available from Santa Cruz to the reserve. All UCSC Fort Ord Natural Reserve activities require teamwork and communication. There is potential for exposure to poison oak, snakes, weather, and insects. We will be working on rugged off trail environments.
UCSC FONR Office Is located at:
UCSC MBEST center
3180 Imjin Rd. Suite 104
Marina, CA.
We will meet at this location on the first day of each opportunity, and then spend the rest of the time out in the UCSC Reserve parcels nearby.
To receive mailings about all of our opportunities, please sign up at this LINK!
Contact UCSC FONR Director Joe Miller at joemiller@ucsc.edu with any questions, hope to see you on the reserve!