GeoIntern 2023 is now CLOSED for applications

We are proud to announce the launch of our 10th annual GeoIntern, a summer training programme we run in association with local and international experts and institutions that places students in active research projects where they can learn a range of highly transferable skills over the course of four weeks.

This year there are four different programmes to choose from, covering a range of disciplines.

The deadline for applications is 10 March 2023 and it is open to undergraduates and recent graduates from relevant fields of study of any nationality.

Scholarships

GeoTenerife is committed to open access. Once again we will offer TWO full scholarships for the summer GeoIntern programme. We are passionate about making our programmes accessible to talented young scientists wherever possible, and our scholarships are intended to support students who otherwise would not be able to apply. Each scholarship will cover the full course fee (which includes weekday half board accommodation, all local transfers, tuition, liability insurance and excursions but not flights to/from Tenerife or weekend catering) plus a stipend of €500 to help towards other costs. To see how previous scholars got on, please see our dedicated Twitter feed @GeoTScholar.

Transferable skills

GeoIntern is a great opportunity to learn a range of skills, attend exclusive lectures from leading local and international experts and gain experience working alongside seasoned professionals out in the field. ALL TEACHING IS IN ENGLISH.

We are particularly interested in helping you to develop your science communication skills. Whatever your chosen career later on, learning how best to present your views on science and your work will stand you in good stead, and we believe learning to communicate science to the general public is vital so research is not limited just to papers and conferences.

Weeks 1 and 2 of GeoIntern will be dedicated to SciComm training to learn the latest practical skills in science communication; an introduction to the dramatic volcanology of the Canary Islands through a series of technical and field trips and training for the collaborative research work you will participate in during weeks 3 and 4.

Recognition and networking

Your collaborative research work alongside the professionals in the field will be fully recognised in any subsequent publication resulting from research you collaborate in alongside the experts and institutions that participate in our summer training programme.

Throughout your time in with us you will also be taught by a range of our local, associated experts. It is part of our drive to help young scientists start developing contact networks early on to help in their future career development.

Logistics

We take care of all your local accommodation, transfers (from meeting you on arrival in Tenerife to transfers to other islands when your programme demands it) as well as a weekly excursion programme to ensure you maximise your time with us. Our dedicated GeoTenerife field manager is available throughout to ensure the smooth daily running of the programme and to resolve any issues that may arise.

Want to see how previous students got on?

ou can scroll through our dedicated Twitter feeds @GeoIntern and @GeoTScholar. Have a look at our playlist of GeoIntern testimonial interviews on our YouTube channel dating right back to 2014 here. You can also catch up on what our past interns are up to on our Facebook page, by scrolling through our “WHERE ARE THEY NOW?” posts, which we will be updating throughout this application period.

To apply

GeoIntern is heavily over-subscribed every year. To apply, read through the various programmes and decide which one/s you’d like to be considered for. Then click on “Apply Now” below and fill in the form. Only one form per candidate please.

To maximise your chances of a successful application, take care of the details:

  • Read through the programmes thoroughly to ensure you apply for the one/s that best fit your interests
  • Ensure you meet the requirements for the programme/s you are interested in
  • Some elements of your application have a word limit. We do this for a reason – we want you to take care over your application, and prioritise the most important information. Re-hashed, poorly thought out epistles don’t float our boat.
  • The link will be deactivated once the deadline has passed, and late submissions will not be admitted.
  • Write a GREAT cover letter. We are specifically looking for enthusiastic young scientists that are passionate about their subject, and can show they are committed and professionally minded.
  • For the CV section, we are mainly interested in your academic experience and achievements.
  • Read through your application before you press “submit”. You only get one chance to make a first impression.
  • Shortlisted candidates (particularly potential GeoTScholars) may be required to undertake a Skype interview after the deadline for submission passes.

We work hard to put together a unique programme to help talented young scientists to get a wide range of experience and skills. Now tell us why you’re perfect for the role. Good luck!

30th June – 28th July 2023

All programmes include

Science Communication

Our Science Communication programme is run in association with Andy Ridgeway, a senior lecturer from UWE responsible for the university’s MSc in Science Communication and Hannah Little, lecturer in Communication and Media at the University of Liverpool.

The science communication training teaches the latest practical skills in science communication including science writing, video production as well as communicating science through social media. It is taught in an interactive way that will enable you to develop confidence and skills when communicating. Students will have the opportunity to undertake science writing and develop a short video and receive feedback on their work.

The training will appeal to those considering a career communicating about science and the environment as well as those for whom communication may be part of their role, such as researchers.

There will also be guided sessions of practical work overseen by our associated local experts in Tenerife.

The key skills students will learn are:

  • How to write in a lively, engaging way about science for articles in the media and blogs.
  • Producing a short video about your research and the research of others.
  • Essential skills in presenting in front of a camera and in front of a live audience.
  • How to use social media effectively to communicate about science/the environment.
  • Adapting your communication to different audiences.
  • How to do an engaging interview for written articles, podcasts and videos.
  • Sound and video editing for brilliant audio (podcast) and video clips.
  • Scripting podcasts and vodcasts.
  • The art of telling a good story about science and the environment.
  • Using your knowledge of science and the environment to help bring about change.

Students will receive feedback on longer pieces of written work and videos and start developing their portfolio.

There will also be a project to complete, with winning submissions to be showcased and promoted on our social media channels.

Andy will deliver the training in Week 1 of our GeoIntern programme. He is an award-winning journalist who spent nearly 20 years in the profession before becoming an academic. After starting his career working on local newspapers, he moved into science journalism and became Deputy Editor of BBC Focus, the BBC’s science magazine. During his time at Focus, he was named Editorial Person of the Year in the BBC Magazines Awards for Excellence. Since becoming a lecturer, Andy has continued to write for BBC Focus, New Scientist and The Economist, among other publications. Andy is a researcher on the European Commission-funded research project, RETHINK, which is exploring the challenges and opportunities presented by online science communication.

Hannah will be in Tenerife for Week 2 of the programme. Her research interests are digital communication, linguistic and cultural evolution, experimental methods and data analysis. Before going into academia, Hannah worked in science communication professionally. She worked full time co-ordinating the STEM Ambassador programme and the Nuffield Research Placements in the North East of England. Since then, she has facilitated science communication training with many organisations including the British Council, the UK Environment Agency and “I’m a scientist, get me out of here!”

From Week 3 GeoIntern will split into programme A, B, C or D as outlined below:

Field skills and geophysics survey

A: TENERIFE

Field skills and geophysics survey

Field work: ongoing impacts + recovery from the La Palma eruption 2021

B: LA PALMA

Field work: ongoing impacts + recovery from the La Palma eruption 2021

Building Volcanic Resilience: Research project

C: TENERIFE

Building Volcanic Resilience: Research project

Sustainable Tourism: Research Project

D: TENERIFE

Sustainable Tourism: Research Project

At the conclusion of GeoIntern, we will hold a graduation at our HQ. Students will present a report of their work and there will be a formal presentation of graduation Certificates attesting to the skills you have learnt (subject to students submitting timely original pieces of work as set throughout the course).

Summer Programme cost

The GeoIntern programme costs £2450 for four weeks.

Bookable with a £950 deposit and the balance falls due 8 weeks before arrival.

You will be learning highly transferable skills in you time with us and you will participate in live research projects.

The scientists you will be training with for GeoIntern programmes are industry-recognised experts, and you will be learning directly from them. You will have a minimum of 180 direct contact hours with a variety of them from a range of backgrounds over four weeks.

You will receive feedback and guidance about your training and work in the field. This is an opportunity for you to develop a range of skills that are directly transferable to the workplace and will strengthen your CV.

You will also receive intensive science communication training to ensure you can present yourself and your work effectively in future (on and off camera) from professional lecturers.

We are passionate believers in the need to train young scientists to communicate well to both scientific and non-scientific audiences. This training will add to your highly transferable skills for your future career, help with your general confidence when speaking about your work and with future job applications, funding applications or gaining support for your research.

The fee covers the teaching costs and expenses for our experts as well as your accommodation, half board catering Monday to Friday (breakfast and supper), transfer costs (including return flights or ferry journeys to other islands for programmes in La Palma; airport/port transfers, daily transfer to your changing work environment) and liability cover. We are members of ABTA, the UK Travel Association, so your booking, if successful, is fully protected.

The fee does NOT cover your flights to/from Tenerife, which are your responsibility to book and pay for, or weekend catering. ALL programmes begin and end in Tenerife and we will transfer you to other islands from here if required by your programme.

We organise any required permits to enable you to participate in our fieldwork as well as any medical certificates you may need to be able to work in certain industrial installations where applicable. We endeavour to ensure you always have access to WIFI and a shared kitchen.

Your fee also covers a weekly excursion programme, to ensure you learn about the particular nature of the environment you are working in from local experts. There will be one full day excursion per week (including for those working in La Palma), and all associated costs (including extra insurance where required, or government permits) are included in your fee. Previous excursions have included an exclusive night-time descent into a majestic little-known lava tube with a local caving club professional and a biologist to describe the unique environment and fauna endemic to that cave; an ascent up to Teide crater; a trek down a dyke-rich gorge led by a local volcanologist followed by a boat ride out to sea for lunch and to see the resident dolphin population.

Part of your fee covers GeoTenerife running costs in the UK and Tenerife (to ensure a successful programme we have a permanent, fully-owned subsidiary in Tenerife), our ABTA membership (the UK travel trade association for tour operators and travel agents which protects your payment so your booking is secure) and comprehensive work and liability insurance cover.

A further percentage of your fee supports our Scholarship programme to enable wider access to GeoIntern, which is fully funded by the Summer Programme.

Some of our participants each year are part or fully-funded by their home university to participate in our programme, so it is worth asking your tutor if funds are available for this purpose.

On successful graduation, we are here to advise, promote, support and act as referees for you long after your month with us in the Canary Islands ends.

Want to apply?

Once you have read through the programmes on offer, you can apply using ONE of the options below. Please note our scholarships are only intended to open access to students who otherwise would not be able to apply. Our programmes are oversubscribed so do take care over your application.

APPLY HERE for the Summer Programme

APPLY HERE for a scholarship

Want to know more about GeoIntern?

See how other students got on by following our Facebook and Twitter posts where we will be posting the latest 2022 GeoIntern videos and new updates from our participants from previous years too.

You can also see student views from previous years on our YouTube channel:

Press Clippings
1 GeoTenerife internships make local and international news in Spain   fotonoticia_20160404124820_260 El Instituto Volcanológico de Canarias (Involcan) ha recibido hasta la fecha 80 solicitudes de estudiantes universitarios de grado y postgrado procedentes de 37 universidades de Alemania, Canadá, España, Estados Unidos, Francia, Italia y Reino Unido para realizar prácticas y tareas de colaboración científica con los investigadores del Involcan en 2016.
2 GeoTenerife internships make local and international news in Spain   fotonoticia_20160404124820_260 El Instituto Volcanológico de Canarias (Involcan) ha recibido hasta la fecha 80 solicitudes de estudiantes universitarios de grado y postgrado procedentes de 37 universidades de Alemania, Canadá, España, Estados Unidos, Francia, Italia y Reino Unido para realizar prácticas y tareas de colaboración científica con los investigadores del Involcan en 2016.
3 GeoTenerife Interns take part in Volcanoes Night in Tenerife and make the evening news Volcanoes Night in Tenerife En el mundo, hay entre quince o veinticinco volcanes en erupción en un día cualquiera. Canarias se ha unido a la lista de 350 ciudades europeas que celebran la noche de los volcanes. Los científicos recuerdan la necesidad de que se divulgue información científica apta para todos los públicos.
4 August 2014 Internship gallery August 2014 Internship gallery PhotoGallery for the closing session for the August 2014 Internship at ITER, Tenerife.
5 Manufacturing Business we are decided to construct a platform where college students can genuinely reward from operating proper together with experts GeoTenerife is a British isles firm that runs science area trips and internship programmes for British isles college students in the Canary Islands. Their most recent marketing campaign noticed them deliver six publish and undergraduate learners from a variety of Uk universities to operate with the Canarian Volcanological Institute (Instituto Volcanológico de Canarias, INVOLCAN), in the Canary Islands.
6 GeoTenerife August Volcanic Risk internships end on a high GeoTenerife is a UK company that runs science field trips and internship programmes for UK students in the Canary Islands. Their most recent campaign saw them bring six post and undergraduate students from a range of UK universities to work with the Canarian Volcanological Institute (Instituto Volcanológico de Canarias, INVOLCAN), in the Canary Islands. GeoTenerife Director Sharon Backhouse said, “We are passionate about granting access for talented individuals to real science. Having seen, at first hand, the raw deal many students get when applying for science internships, we are determined to build a platform where students can really benefit from working right alongside scientists and learn about their craft.”
7 BusByway GeoTenerife is a UK company that runs science field trips and internship programmes for UK students in the Canary Islands. Their most recent campaign saw them bring six post and undergraduate students from a range of UK universities to work with the Canarian Volcanological Institute (Instituto Volcanológico de Canarias, INVOLCAN), in the Canary Islands.
8 The University of Glasgow's facebook Pamela Rattigan shared this pic of her first day of Geo Tenerife internship hiking in Teide National park. Amazing scenery! #UofGsummer
9 Involcan Facebook En este enlace pueden leer las opiniones de seis alumnos británicos sobre la experiencia que han disfrutado este verano junto al personal de INVOLCAN.
10 La Laguna Ahora Una veintena de estudiantes universitarios procedentes de quince universidades europeas realizan prácticas a lo largo de 2014 en el Instituto Volcanológico de Canarias (Involcan), una entidad impulsada por el Cabildo de Tenerife. Los estudiantes proceden de las universidades de La Laguna, Complutense de Madrid, Oviedo (España), Florencia (Italia), College Dublin (Irlanda), Oxford, Bristol, Northumbria, Manchester, Glasglow, Durham, College London, Leicester, Brighton y Chester (Reino Unido).
11 Nuestras Islas Canarias Los jóvenes proceden de universidades de España, Italia, Irlanda y Reino Unido Una veintena de estudiantes universitarios procedentes de quince universidades europeas realizan prácticas a lo largo de 2014 en el Instituto Volcanológico de Canarias (Involcan), una entidad impulsada por el Cabildo de Tenerife. La mayor parte ellos están cursando sus estudios para la obtención de su grado universitario en diferentes disciplinas relacionadas con las ciencias, pero también quienes están optando a su grado de doctor.
12 Sector Publishing Intelligence: Sun, Sea… Volcanoes? VOLCANIC RISK UNDERGRADUATE INTERNSHIPS, Summer 2014 GeoTenerife proudly announces that we have places available in AUGUST and SEPTEMBER on our summer internship programme, in collaboration with INVOLCAN, the Canary Islands Volcanology Institute, for undergraduates interested...
13 Twicsy: Sun, sea, VOLCANOES? GeoTenerife: Sun, sea, VOLCANOES? GeoTenerife #VOLCANOLOGY #SUMMER #INTERNSHIPS Applications open May 12. Reply to preregister. http://t.co/4I8RuSBzFx - 2014-04-26 16:12:23 Read more at http://twicsy.com/i/zYrxcf#S3uqvpLRMxbbPjyw.99
14 BusByway: Sun, Sea… Volcanoes? GeoTenerife proudly announces that we have places available in AUGUST and SEPTEMBER on our summer internship programme, in collaboration with INVOLCAN, the Canary Islands Volcanology Institute, for undergraduates interested in the field of...
15 New Zealand Times: Sun, Sea… Volcanoes? GeoTenerife proudly announces that they have places available in AUGUST and SEPTEMBER on their summer internship programme, in collaboration with INVOLCAN, the Canary Islands Volcanology Institute, for undergraduates interested in the field of...
16 Silobreaker: Sun, Sea… Volcanoes? This story VOLCANIC RISK UNDERGRADUATE INTERNSHIPS, Summer 2014 GeoTenerife proudly announces that we have places available in AUGUST and SEPTEMBER on our summer internship programme, in collaboration with INVOLCAN,...
17 Manufacturing Business: Solar, Sea… Volcanoes? VOLCANIC Danger UNDERGRADUATE INTERNSHIPS, Summer season 2014 GeoTenerife proudly announces that we have spots obtainable in AUGUST and SEPTEMBER on our summer internship programme, in collaboration with INVOLCAN, the Canary Islands Volcanology Institute, for undergraduates intrigued in the discipline of:*Geoscience*Environmental sciences*Conversation and outreach...
18 Facebook: Bude and Beyond & budeandbeyond.co.uk VOLCANIC RISK UNDERGRADUATE INTERNSHIPS, Summer 2014 GeoTenerife proudly announces that we have places available in AUGUST and SEPTEMBER on our summer internship programme, in collaboration with INVOLCAN, the Canary Islands Volcanology Institute, for undergraduates interested in the field of: *Geoscience*Environmental sciences*Communication and outreach...
19 Outdoor Enthusiast : Sun, sea and volcanoes… GeoTenerife have announced that they have places available in august and September within the summer internship programme, in collaboration with INVOLCAN, the Canary Islands Volcanology Institute, for undergraduates interested in the field of Geoscience, Environmental sciences and Communication and outreach
20 Sun, sea and volcanoes… GeoTenerife have announced that they have places available in august and September within the summer internship programme, in collaboration with INVOLCAN, the Canary Islands Volcanology Institute, for undergraduates interested in the field of Geoscience, Environmental sciences and Communication and outreach
21 Find a bunk house: Sun, Sea... Volcanoes? GeoTenerife proudly announces that we have places available in AUGUST and SEPTEMBER on our summer internship programme, in collaboration with INVOLCAN, the Canary Islands Volcanology Institute
22 Outdoor Enthusiast magazine, Sun, sea and volcanoes… GeoTenerife have announced that they have places available in august and September within the summer internship programme, in collaboration with INVOLCAN, the Canary Islands Volcanology Institute, for undergraduates interested in the field of Geoscience, Environmental sciences, Communication and outreach
23 GeoTenerife August Volcanic Risk internships end on a high GeoTenerife is a UK company that runs science field trips and internship programmes for UK students in the Canary Islands. Their most recent campaign saw them bring six post and undergraduate students from a range of UK universities to work with the Canarian Volcanological Institute (Instituto Volcanológico de Canarias, INVOLCAN), in the Canary Islands.