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Internships

Gain Firsthand Experience

Prepare yourself for a rewarding career in education, environmental & veterinary sciences and so much more with an internship at Ohio Wildlife Center! Based in Columbus, OH, all positions offer hands-on experience in the various aspects of caring for wild animals and teaching the public about their importance.

Explore New Interests

Interns with our Wildlife Rehabilitation team focus on the cleaning, care and feeding of the patients admitted to our nonprofit emergency Wildlife Hospital in Franklin County. This includes our Pre-Release Facility in Delaware County, where outdoor rehabilitation conditioning  takes place.  Education interns assist in the cleaning, care and feeding of our permanent animal ambassadors and work with our trained staff in providing animal enrichment and training and visitor education.

Develop New Skills

Interns will work with experience staff and volunteers to master new skills and gain a better understanding of how effective programs are managed. Here are just a few of the skills you’ll be able to add to your resume after a session with us!

  • Diet Preparation & Hand Feeding
  • Habitat Set-Up & Maintenance
  • Behavior Monitoring
  • Public Speaking & Customer Service
  • Research Study Design
  • …and more!

Support Local Wildlife

No matter what opportunity you pursue with Ohio Wildlife Center, your work will directly impact the health and sustainability of Ohio’s native species. Together, we work with more than 8,000 animals per year and thousands more people in hopes of preventing the need for hospital care as much as possible. Thank you for considering spending your time with us – we can’t wait to learn more about you!

Session Availability

Fall 2024

As the weather gets cooler, our work at Ohio Wildlife Center does not stop! Our permanent animal residents, or Education Animal Ambassadors, are in need of year-round care and with school back in session, the demand for educational programs revolving around our local wildlife increases. If you’d like to hone in on your animal care and public speaking skills, join us for our Animal Husbandry and Interpretation internship! You will need to complete 160 hours between August 25th and November 30th.

Applications for our Fall Session will open on April 14th. Sign up HERE for email alerts. 

Eligibility Requirements

  • Interns must be at least 18 years old and currently enrolled in and accredited college or university, or else a graduate within the last 6 months.
  • Must be available to work a consistent weekly schedule of 12-16 hours per week, totaling 160 service hours over the 12-week session.
  • Must be able to lift light weight (up to 50lbs.), be one your feet for prolonged periods of time and work in all weather types. Much of our work happens outside!

All of our internships are competitive, with limited spots offered in each session. While these requirements make you eligible, each area of concentration may have additional requirements and preferences. Be sure to read the application directions for your desired position fully before applying!

Get Ready to Apply

  • All internships use a shared online questionnaire and require you to submit three documents: your resume and two letters of recommendation. Letters may be emailed directly to volunteer@ohiowildlifecenter.org by references instead of uploaded to your application, but all documents are still due by the deadline.
  • You will be asked to answer three short-answer questions in 1000 characters or less each. We recommend preparing them ahead of time and pasting into your application when you’re ready.
    • How does this internship relate to your career goals and what do you expect to learn from your experience if selected? Please include how this position would build on past experiences in this field.
    • Describe a time when someone looked to you for advice. How did you handle the situation and what was the outcome?
    • Describe a time when you took initiative to complete a project. How did you structure your work and ensure you were doing it correctly? Were you successful? Please explain why or why not.
  • Once the deadline has passed, we will review your application and may reach out for additional information via an online interview.
  • Accepted candidates will have three days to provide information for a background check; all offers are contingent upon satisfactory results.

Areas of Concentration

Animal Husbandry & Interpretation

Learn the fundamentals of educational program design, as well as how to care for a living collection of Animal Ambassadors. Interns will hone their public speaking skills by assisting with various programs and see to the daily care of resident animals – everything from meal preparation and cleaning to creating enrichment.

Hospital Admissions & Nutrition

Ohio Wildlife Center admits several thousand ill, injured and orphaned wild animals each year. Hospital Admissions and Nutrition Interns will focus on the operations and public relations side of running our Wildlife Hospital, working directly with patient presenters and our database. Interns will also support nutrition planning and meal preparation for hospital patients.

Pre-Release Enrichment & Nutrition

Enrich your understanding of the natural world with hands-on experience in the care of wild animals! Ohio Wildlife Center’s Pre-Release Facility is our patients’ last stop in their recovery. Pre-Release Enrichment & Nutrition Interns will focus on the daily care and observation of patients at this facility, helping them reacclimate to the wild before being released home.

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