Professional Master's Internship Track

On this page:

The Professional Master’s Internship Track of the MS TCBES program prepares graduates to actively contribute as scientific professionals in environmental and conservation agencies, NGOs, and other organizations. Candidates pursue an array of courses and a strong internship program for professional training in tropical conservation and resource management.

The professional internship provides an immersion experience at an organization that is part of the world of resource management, often with an eye toward creating policies and practices that seek to improve sustainability and/or environmental stewardship. These are intensive training opportunities, and while the interns become an integral part of the organization to which they are assigned, they are not contractors working for an agency. The graduate student will be required to write a detailed proposal prior to commencing the professional internship, and the agency personnel will serve in a mentoring capacity. The professional internship is a mutually beneficial two-way obligation between the TCBES graduate student and the organization to which the graduate student commits.

The requirements for the Professional Internship program can be found in the UH Hilo Catalog. The degree consists of:

• Core courses credits required for all M.S. TCBES students
• Professional Internship courses: CBES 690 Professional Internship (1) , CBES 691 Becoming Environmental Leader (2) , CBES 692 Proposal Writing (2) , CBES 695 Becoming Envrnmntl Communicatr (2) , CBES 696 Emerging Envrnmntl Professionl (2)
• Required courses for Internship Track: CBES 645 Soc Sci Rsch Mthds Envir Cons (3) , CBES 677 Quantitative Ecology (3) (starting Fall 2024)
• Elective credits at 600-level (can take up to 6 credits of 400-level courses with a substitution).
• Please note that you follow the catalog requirements for graduation based on the year you enter the program. The catalog can change slightly from year-to-year. Back issues of the catalog are available.

Timeline

The Professional Internship track of the M.S. degree may be completed within two years. A suggested timeline is shown below, but students will have flexibility to deviate from this schedule as needs arise. In the first year, students will take the required core courses and two internship courses. In the summer, the Professional Internship Track students will focus on their 600-hour graduate-level internship. In the second year, students will be completing their remaining coursework and continue any internship responsibilities. In the second year students will complete their electives, ensuring that they have met the requirements; see catalog and complete the additional graduation requirements: internship report and public presentation.

Suggested two-year course plan for students in the Professional Internship track (starting Fall 2024) (36 cr. total).

Semester 1 (Fall)

Your first semester is about settling into the TCBES program. Through the required coursework, you will explore seminal, innovative, and novel concepts and techniques of tropical conservation biology and environment science; and, with the input of the internship track advisor, you will determine the direction of your internship and begin any permit, certification, or IRB processes.

Semester 2 (Spring)

For your second semester you will complete your required core course work, the second internship course, and submit your internship proposal. After proposal approval you may begin your graduate-level internship in earnest.

1st Summer

Your first summer is important for conducting the majority of your 600-hour embedded graduate-level internship experience. You will also complete the third internship course.

Semester 3 (Fall)

You will complete your internship responsibilities, the fourth internship course, two electives, and, if necessary, data analysis and writing.

Semester 4 (Spring)

You should plan on spending most of your time on writing your internship report and preparing for your public presentation. You will also complete the fifth internship course, two electives, and in some cases data analysis. If you present your project and complete your report in Semester 4, you should be able to submit Graduate Form 3 by the UH Hilo academic calendar deadline and graduate.

Additional time

Sometimes a Master’s program takes longer than two years. However, by thinking about and planning the scope and deliverables of your internship early in the program, hopefully not many additional semesters will be required to complete the Professional Master’s Internship Track M.S. requirements.

Suggested Two-Year Course Plan (starting Fall 2024)

Year 1

Year 2

Please visit the TCBES Student Handbook more detailed information on the program.

Developing a Professional Internship Project

The specifics of the graduate-level internship will be developed between the graduate student and the agency through a project proposal, with rigor confirmed by the Program Coordinator of the UH Hilo TCBES Professional Internship track. It is the student's responsibility to find a partnership agency, with assistance from the Internship Coordinator. In the conservation realm, we have a variety of existing relationships with agencies (state, federal, private) throughout Hawaiʻi and we continue to expand this network. After acceptance to the program, the student will work with the Program Coordinator of the Internship track to figure out a placement that will be the best fit for both the student and agency.

Many of our affiliate faculty work in organizations involved in resource management. The list changes and new ones can be added, but as a sampling of some of the agencies that our program has connections are:

Inquiries:

• Dr. Jonathan Price, Director, TCBES Graduate Program
• Dr. Tracy Wiegner, Associate Director, TCBES Graduate Program
• Mx. Lisa Canale, Professional Internship Track Coordinator, TCBES Graduate Program