Summer Internship Program

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Completing a summer internship with North Carolina Cooperative Extension provides a high-caliber educational experience, and it allows you to build a bridge from college to career. The internships are paid, and interns can expect to:

• Gain knowledge about Extension careers,
• Develop rich job experiences, and
• Help deliver solutions to address local needs.

The internship helps you to consider careers in agriculture, food systems, nutrition, youth development, community development, family and consumer sciences, natural resources, and environmental science. Our internships cover 10-weeks during the summer, and many of our interns choose to receive college credit for their internship experience.We are looking for students who want to make a positive difference for people and improve local communities through education. Do you have:

• An interest in an Extension career?
• An interest in serving your community?
• A genuine interest in people?
• A desire to continue to learn and grow professionally?
• An aspiration to work as part of a team?

If you do, we are interested in you! We recruit potential Extension professionals who can lead, teach, motivate, and communicate.

Extension Interns Make a Positive Difference

During your work in one of our 100 counties or with the Eastern Band of the Cherokee, your job as an Extension intern will support local programs. You will assist Extension agents make a difference through programs like Master Gardeners, pesticide training, diabetes cooking classes, and 4-H camp. Extension internships offer a first-hand view of Extension careers with the guidance of an Extension Agent who is an NC State faculty member. Some illustrations of the past work of Extension interns includes:

• Assisting a family and consumer sciences Extension Agent to instruct parents how to build a safer environment for their children;
• Working with an agriculture and natural resources Extension Agent to deliver education to protect the environment we all share;
• Teaming up with an Extension 4-H Agent to demonstrate healthy food preparation to youth; and
• Helping community leaders set up and run a farmers market.

If you are interested in an Extension career, completing an internship will give you an competitive advantage in the job market. NC State Extension is constantly looking for talented individuals who want to empower people. Extension helps people to improve their lives through an educational process that uses scientific knowledge focused on issues and needs.

About Cooperative Extension

North Carolina State University (Est. 1887) and North Carolina A&T State University (Est. 1890) are both Land Grant Institutions, established by the Morrill Acts of 1862 and 1890, originally to teach agriculture, engineering, and military science. The 1887 Hatch Act established the foundation of agricultural experiment stations to provide agricultural research to share with college students and farmers. The Smith-Lever Act of 1914 established Cooperative Extension.

The term “Cooperative” refers to the unique way Extension is funded: through the cooperation of federal, state, and county governments. In North Carolina, county boards of commissioners have maintained supportive roles to ensure that all residents benefit from Extension programs. The term “Extension” refers to how the knowledge, research, and resources of the Land Grant universities are extended beyond the college campus to the people of North Carolina. Both NC State and NC A&T provide research-based knowledge to farmers, families, youth, and communities.

For More Information

Counties offering internships will be available in late-January, and student applications will be due in mid-February. Check the How to Apply website for specific dates and information. For more information about Extension internships, review the necessary job qualifications, check out the FAQ page and then get the application details from the How to Apply page.

Please direct questions to:

Joseph L. Donaldson, PhD
Associate Professor and Extension Specialist
Department of Agricultural and Human Sciences
1 Lampe Dr, 248 Ricks Hall
Campus Box 7607
Raleigh, NC 27695-7607
joseph_donaldson@ncsu.edu