Pairing outstanding undergraduate students with faculty advisors for environmentally-focused, client-based research, applied learning projects, and internships
EcoStudio pairs students with sustainability-related internships from community partners, including local businesses, non-profits and municipalities, as well as the UNC campus, for high-impact, applied learning opportunities to solve challenges of today. EcoStudio also works with students who have found their own internships, and EcoStudio partner organizations now include Fortune 500 companies from around the globe.
An applied learning experience through the EcoStudio allows students to explore the world of careers in energy, sustainability, environment, policy and planning, and many other fields. In these experiential settings, students can apply what they have learned in the classroom to real-world problems, allowing them to make a real difference while developing professional skills that will help them in the job market.
EcoStudio students meet weekly with their advisors and other students to talk about their projects, collaborate, and participate in career development workshops. Classroom components of the project foster academic discussion with peers and professors to help students understand the significance of their projects in a broader picture, as well as help the students prepare for the next phase of their professional careers.
EcoStudio students meet weekly as a group to hear more about each other's projects and participate in professional development activities. Students work on resumes, cover letters, improve their professional social networks, blog about their internships, hear from guest speakers from a variety of different fields, and give a final presentation about their experience. More information about weekly EcoStudio meetings is available to UNC students
Students who apply and are accepted to unpaid internships that focus on renewable energy with a campus-based unit may now be eligible for support from the RESPC Internship Scholarship. Eligible positions are noted in the detailed position posts on the Projects page and the Other Internships page. Look for the RESPC logo (shown below). EcoStudio staff will reach out to successful candidates about the scholarship prior to the start of the internship.
Thanks to the generous support of the Institute for the Environment, EcoStudio is pleased to be able to provide need-based awards periodically for qualified students with unpaid internships.
Send an email to ecostudio@unc.edu.
