Research & Internship Opportunities
Research Opportunities
ARE faculty are national and global leaders in their respective research areas. All of them have active research grants, with some of these grants providing unique research opportunities to ARE undergraduate students. These opportunities vary across faculty and projects but could include part-time research assistantship (paid or unpaid), part-time or full-time summer internship (typically paid), independent course study, and research career advising.
Job announcements about new research assistantships are circulated via departmental emails and posted on JobX. It is also a great idea to contact ARE faculty who work in the area of your interest to introduce yourself and see if there are current or upcoming opportunities to work with them. See it as “on-the-job-training”, a research assistantship on ARE faculty’s projects is a unique and highly effective way to develop your skills, make connections, and build up your resume while in school.
Internship and Independent Study
ARE majors can earn up to 6 credits (combined) by enrolling in ARE 4999 Independent Study, ARE 4995 Special Topics, or ARE 4991 Professional Internship to fulfill their 36 ARE credit requirement. If the students have already reached the 6 credit limit with Independent Study or Special Topics, Professional Internship credits can be used towards the 120 credits required for graduation.
FAQ & Useful Resources
How is my internship graded?
The internship work may be graded by the student’s internship instructor on a letter scale or on a Pass/Fail basis. However, internship credits earned on a Pass/Fail basis can contribute only to the overall graduation requirements. The Pass/Fail credits cannot be counted towards the Resource Economics major. The S/U grading option is not available for internship credits.
How are internship credits evaluated?
The number of credits received for an internship depends on the number of hours worked. A typical undergraduate student enrolls for 15 credits during a 14-week semester, working for about 40 hours a week on earning those credits. For the number of credits desired for the internship, students may be expected to work for a proportionate number of hours using the regular course load and effort mentioned above as a guideline.
At the end of the internship, students will be required to hand in a report/paper that describes the tasks performed and the knowledge gained, particularly in regards to the goals outlined in the Learning Contract. This report may be sent to the internship instructor by email. In addition, both the employer and the student will be required to fill out a brief Evaluation Form in order to assess the extent to which the goals set forth in the Learning Contract were met. It is recommended that the internship grade be based on the student’s report, as well as both the employer and student evaluations.
What if my internship is paid?
The internship work can be either paid or unpaid, but it has to be related to the general areas covered by the ARE major. It is not necessary for the employer to have any formal arrangement with the University of Connecticut or with the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics.
Can I get credit for a summer internship?
During the summer sessions a separate tuition fee will be charged by the University for acquiring internship credits. Financial Aid arrangements for summer credits vary; contact the Office of Student Financial Aid Services for information.
Past Internships
- College Fashionista
- Control Systems, Inc.
- CT Office of Policy and Management
- CT Judicial Branch
- CT DEEP, Pollution Prevention
- End Hunger Connecticut
- Farm Credit East
- Feeding Children Everywhere
- Foresters Financial
- Hancock Agricultural Investment Group
- Hartford Food System
- Horseworks Insurance
- Key Bank
- Kawaiikalia Farms
- Levo International
- Liberty Mutual
- Louis Dreyfus Commodities
- Rocco and Associates Wealth Management, Inc.
- Roy & Leroy Government Relations
- The Daily Campus
- The Washington Center
- U.S. Navy
- Utah Abandoned Mine Reclamation Project
For questions/concerns: contact Beth Settje at beth.settje@uconn.edu
Beth specializes in assisting and providing career resources to undergrads within UConn’s College of Agriculture, Health, and Natural Resources. If you are in a club or class within the college that might benefit from a Career Building Workshop, contact Beth.
How to Apply:
1. Meet with your advisor to discuss your options and establish the right path for you:
ARE 4991: Professional Internship
Credits: 1-6 to be decided through advising. This course is repeatable for up to 6 credits total.
Prerequisite: Open only to junior and senior students majoring in Applied and Resource Economics who have demonstrated outstanding academic ability and possess excellent professional potential; requires Independent Study Authorization with consent of department head and advisor.
- Provides students with a meaningful experience in a formalized applied resource economics program under supervised conditions. Each student taking this course must submit a formal written report for evaluation and meet all other course requirements as specified by the instructor.
ARE 4999: Independent Study
Credits: Hours & Credits are made by arrangement. The course may be repeated for credit with a change of topic.
Prerequisite: Open to students with Independent Study Authorization, this must be approved by the advisor and the department.
- Designed primarily for Resource Economics majors.
2. Submit a Student Enrollment Request Form.
Refer to the meeting with your advisor to fill in the 'requested number of credits' and 'title of project to appear on Transcript'. The form will be sent to your advisor, the ARE Department Head and the Registrar for approval.
3. Fill out the ARE Internship Learning Contract or Independent Study Authorization Form.
Email form to your advisor and the ARE Department Head for the necessary signatures. Once these forms have been approved you will automatically be enrolled in the requested course.
4. During the internship, students are required to keep a weekly log.
Make note of your achievements, challenges, and how your work aligned with the goals set in the Learning Contract. This log will help prepare you for your final report/paper (to be submitted at the end of the internship). Report/paper length is at the discretion of the faculty advisor, and the number of credits earned.