Study wildlife conservation and get work experience with a conservation organization or on a game reserve

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Program Overview
Life on the Program
Project Details
Volunteer Testimonials

Program Overview

You will gain once in a lifetime field experience working on projects to conserve the likes of lions, leopards, cheetah, elephants and rhinos. Learn to track animals through the bush, master radio telemetry techniques and sleep under the spectacular African stars, all while living and working alongside FGASA qualified Field Guides.

Starting with a 12 week wildlife research expedition to develop your understanding of wildlife conservation and to further or establish your field guiding skills this internship provides applicants with practical experience and professional qualifications.

Upon the successful completion of your training you will start your final 12 weeks on your work placement. During this phase you will be based at a safari camp catering to tourists or a conservation organization depending on your skills and our partners requirements. At the end of the placement interns may either be offered paid or unpaid work with GVI or with one of our local partners.

Life on the Program

During the training phase most of your time will be spent tracking and observing big game with your team. Your job will be gathering important data to be analyzed and used to improve and launch future preservation efforts. Between your work shifts out in the bush, you will have the opportunity to train in all aspects of a career in the field, from animal research and data processing to camp maintenance.

Work placements are typically with local conservation organizations, game reserves and lodges in South Africa's Bushveld region. Specific positions range across many fields. Some examples include terrestrial and wildlife conservation, hospitality, reserve management and wildlife research.

Your work placement will offer you the opportunity to put into action the skills you learned on the expedition, practice leadership scenarios and gain one of a kind experience in a professional work environment.

While on the training phase of the expedition camp itself is fairly rustic with shared sleeping arrangements in either an old farm house or tented camp whilst on the expedition. Accommodation at the work placements varies but all offer basic to comfortable accommodation.

Project Details

GVI gathers data around local animal species populations and the conditions of their surrounding habitat to give an accurate picture of current challenges many of these species are facing. This vital information is used to maintain a healthy balance of natural resources and ultimately to help conserve some of Africa’s most precious wildlife.

Here are some examples of the initiatives that this project works on:

Detailed monitoring of predators such as lion, leopard, cheetah and hyena
Monitoring and tracking of significant food sources for main predators
Habitat observation and restoration

Local community outreach to teach local children about our efforts and the importance of conservation

How this program makes a difference:

GVI spends up to 12 hours a day collecting data on large predators such as lions, leopards and cheetah. The information gathered is used to give an accurate picture of the predators impact on prey populations, determine social structure, genetics, and spatial movement. This vital information helps maintain a healthy balance of these natural resources and ultimately conserve some of Africa’s important ecosystems.

Volunteer Testimonials

There is so much to say and so much I have seen with a group of people from all around the world with similar interests. It was the most memorable time of my life. Some of the highlights: seeing...

Roy Hallam, United Kingdom

There is so much to say and so much I have seen with a group of people from all around the world with similar interests. It was the most memorable time of my life. Some of the highlights: seeing lions less than 5m away, hyenas nosing around the land rover, seeing elephants on foot 10m away and then hearing three more just 15m behind us – how can something so big be so quiet! Other favourite moments include walking on on the cheetah and tracking (and trying to keep up with a) rhino on foot for 40 minutes.