Internship Program and Volunteering
The Marine Mammal Stranding Program offers both Volunteer and Internship opportunities. See below for the different ways to get involved in our program!
Questions? Contact us at uncw-mmsp@uncw.edu for more information.
Volunteer
Volunteers with the UNCW Marine Mammal Stranding Program are a mix of undergraduate and graduate students, UNCW faculty and staff, and other members of our local community. We typically hold volunteer training meetings each month during the fall and spring semesters. Some of our trainings include introduction to the life history and identification of local marine mammal species, live and deceased stranding response skills, data collection protocols, and zoonotic disease pathogen safety.
If you are interested in volunteering with us, please fill out the form below to be added to our volunteer email list.
Volunteer Waivers
In order to volunteer with our program, you must sign the waiver linked below. If you have any questions or would like more information, please feel free to reach out to us at uncw-mmsp@uncw.edu.
Join the Wave of Support!
Our Marine Mammal Stranding Program depends on the support of individuals like you. Every contribution, whether big or small, helps support our mission to understand, preserve & protect our marine mammals.
Internships
The UNCW Marine Mammal Stranding Program offers a paid summer internship to current UNCW undergraduate students. Interns have the opportunity to learn about and assist with stranding investigations, develop educational outreach materials, and work with K-12 students & the local community by sharing our program's work.
Internship Coordinator
We are looking to hire an internship coordinator who has a background working with marine mammal stranding programs, scientific outreach experience, and familiarity working with adults and children of all backgrounds. The internship coordinator will work collaboratively with the UNCW Marine Mammal Stranding Program leadership team to help facilitate day-to-day aspects of the Summer 2025 undergraduate internship.
Please note - successful applicants will have a bachelor's degree (or higher) and previous experience taking an active role in marine mammal stranding investigations. For details and application info, visit the link below:
Summer 2025 Internship Coordinator - Apply Today!
Summer 2025 Internship
**The summer 2025 application period has ended. Please check back for future opportunities!**
Application deadline: 3/21/2025
Summer 2025 session dates: 5/19/2025 - 7/25/2025
Our internship has a dual focus on marine mammal stranding response and community outreach. Interns have opportunities to learn about and assist with stranding investigations, along with developing educational outreach materials and engaging with K-12 students & the local community by sharing our program's work. This is a paid internship, and housing can be provided at no cost to the intern. At this time, this opportunity is open to all current UNCW undergraduate students. For more information and to submit an application, visit the link below.