Internships

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International Internships

Participating on a Global Vision International expedition not only takes you on an amazing adventure, but also gives you the hands-on experience and training you need to apply for a field position or internship with GVI.

A GVI internship or field position gives you the opportunity to further your training, increase your field experience, learn a new language or simply continue having new and fantastic experiences working abroad.

As GVI’s expeditions are internationally recognized and approved, we can offer our expedition members a large range of jobs and internships as well as a variety of other fantastic careers development opportunities in the fields of education, research, and environmental and wildlife management.

Expedition Internships:

At the midway stage of your expedition (five or six weeks), you will be given the opportunity to apply for an expedition internship. An expedition internship allows you to stay on at your expedition (or sometimes move to another GVI expedition) for a further ten weeks AT NO ADDITIONAL COST from GVI. If you are successful in your application to become an intern, you will in effect become an unpaid staff member who assists the expedition staff in the day-to-day running of the expedition and the training of new expedition members. By doing an internship you are putting yourself in a stronger position to apply for paid field positions.

Other Field Work Opportunities:

At the five week stage of your ten week expedition you will be given the opportunity to apply for a field work position with one of GVI's international partners. Field work positions can be paid or unpaid, and range in duration from one month to one year. Examples of these positions are monitoring programs in National Parks around the world, teaching on tourist programs and developing interpretive materials for environmental centers.

Key Points for Internships and Fieldwork:

It needs longer term commitment (from three months up to two years)
Applicants must attend a ten week GVI expedition for selection and training
All participants will gain fantastic work experience that could change your career
There is no fee for placements.

Case Studies

GVI Patagonia Intern Case Study – Jordan Beezely, USA

Jordan joined the Patagonia Research and Exploration Expedition in September 2006 as an expedition member. As a recent Colorado University graduate, he was looking to expand his career possibilities in the environmental and conservation fields. After the 12 week expedition he joined the team as an intern for the January 2007 expedition, staying on as a paid staff member for the training period of the following expedition before returning home. Once home Jordan began working at an environmental non-profit organization in the western United States and now plans to attend graduate school at University of Denver in the fall to study Environmental Policy and Project Management. Jordan is looking forward to returning to the field to utilize the research and leadership skills he developed working with GVI.

Ecuador Intern Case Study – Susan Miller, Canada

I joined GVI as a volunteer in South Africa in Sept 2005 and after an amazing ten weeks was lucky enough to be chosen to stay as an intern. With undergraduate and master’s degrees in radiation biology, I was more used to doing experiments in the controlled environments of a lab and so was keen to learn all I could about research in the field. My internship allowed me to do just that. Helping the science officer, I was involved in all aspects of the science as well as day-to-day running of a GVI expedition. The animals were incredible and the staff’s knowledge of them was impressive as I tried to absorb as much as I could during my stay. While I was in South Africa, I applied for a staff position in Ecuador and was soon heading off to spend a year in the Amazon rainforest. As the science coordinator, I was able to draw on things I had learned as an intern in South Africa to keep the science running in Ecuador while enjoying the natural beauty and creatures of the rainforest. I am now returning to South Africa to rejoin the GVI team there in October 2007, and set to learn new skills and more about the incredible animals that live there. I can’t wait to be back in the bush. Without GVI, I wouldn’t be living my dream of studying animals in their natural environment while working with like-minded people to help with conservation efforts around the world.

Visit GVI’s Careers Abroad Section

Our Careers Abroad website is packed with field work placements and job opportunities across the world in the fields of sustainable development, conservation, and biological and zoological research. All positions have been carefully selected by Global Vision International and partner organizations to offer you the opportunity to increase your practical field work experience and enjoy working abroad whilst assisting some of the most critical conservation and humanitarian projects in the world.

Click here to visit GVI's Careers Abroad website to view the latest jobs and careers in the field