Cayo Santiago Internship Program: We actively recruit enthusiastic undergraduate students for the Cayo Santiago Internship Program. The program offers an exchange of knowledge and training with participating institutions. The study program will commit to offer day-to-day supervision of the student and to provide all health and safety training associated with the study program. The intern will spend 50% of their time working on a behavioral study for the CSFS and 50% on an independent research project. The availability of an internship and the duration will vary according to the specific needs of the program, however most internships last between 3 and 12 months. The intern may be able to obtain credit points for the hours dedicated to the internship, however this must be coordinated with the student’s home institution. Interns are responsible for their travel arrangements, health and liability insurances. Free Housing may be available during the student’s stay. Internship opportunities present at the CSFS may be related to Population Management, Ecology and Behavior, Population Ecology, Plant Ecology, Feeding Ecology.

Intern Orientation: Upon arrival, interns are provided a broad orientation to Cayo Santiago Field Station. Lasting a few days, the orientation includes introduction to all the CSFS personnel and the various on-going extramural research projects conducted by outside Principal Investigators (e.g. Yale, University of Leipzig, Duke, among others). Our computer resources lab is made available to interns at our Punta Santiago offices, and our Administrative Secretary provides an introduction to the office resources available and each intern is provided access to the network. Our Colony Manager provides an introduction to the spatial and geographical resources available. In addition to the aforementioned resources, interns also are offered mandatory orientations regarding research rules and guidelines for the use of CPRC facilities and for appropriate conduct in our community, occupational health and safety, emergency management, and human resource policies. The intern’s immediate supervisor will discuss expectations for research study, work schedules and time off.

Education Outreach: Interns will be expected to dedicate time to the CSFS community and education outreach program. The main purpose of the program is to offer educational opportunities and community activities to foster a better understanding of primates and research carried out at the CSFS. By hosting open houses the CSFS offers interactive presentations in the Punta Santiago facilities to teachers, students K-12, and community groups. We encourage interns to participate in the after-school computer lab project held daily at the Punta Santiago CPRC facilities by teaching the youth of our local community basic computer skills and to create a collaborative learning environment that motivates students to continue education in science or related fields.