Smithsonian Tropical Research Internship

Our goal is to enable students to develop working skills pertinent to future careers that contribute to the understanding of tropical biodiversity and its relevance to humankind-STRI’s mission. The internship program is aimed at undergraduate or early-stage graduate students who have demonstrated potential for success in such careers. Interns will be selected based on merit and potential for achievement. However, placement depends upon the availability of a match between the applicant’s interest and a new or ongoing project supervised by a STRI staff scientist. We encourage applicants to directly contact potential supervisors. Staff research profiles and contact information can be found at www.stri.org, under “”Scientific Staff.”” If your research interests do not correspond to those of our staff, please let us know and we will send you a list of research affiliates and/or postdoctoral fellows carrying out research at STRI.

Only applications including a letter of support from a STRI supervisor indicating the project description, duties and responsibilities of the intern, will be considered. Please send complete applications on the following deadlines: the 15th of January, April, July, and October. Internships last 3 months and include a monthly stipend of $800 (total $2,400). They do NOT include travel allowances and/or research expenses.

Complete applications must include two components:

1.) Documents from the candidate Candidates should submit an internship application form (see STRI web page www.stri.org) with statement of career and internship goals (two pages maximum), 2 letters of recommendation and academic transcripts. Candidates should also submit a cover letter indicating why they are interested in a particular internship project and how participation will further their academic goals. These documents should be sent electronically in a single pdf or word file to fellows@si.edu.

2.) Document from the proposed supervisor The selected supervisor should send the letter of support indicating the project description, duties and responsibilities of the intern directly to the Office of Academic Programs. For further assistance in internship placement contact: fellows@si.edu. Selected interns can initiate tenure 8 weeks after being selected.

Contact Email: fellows@si.edu

Program Website: http://www.stri.org

Term: 3 months