Work Placement
Costa Rica Rainforest Conservation Internship

Upon your completion of your first 10 weeks you will have developed the base skills to successfully undertake an internship. You will be assessed every week during your volunteering phase with a final review at the end of your first 10 weeks. Those that successfully qualify will, after a 2 week Spanish course in Nicaragua, take their work placement for a further 10 weeks and develop further skills and experience dependent on your work placement. If selected to remain on the expedition you will continue your personal development in conservation, community development, health & safety and environmental management, expedition logistics, practice leadership scenarios and assisting GVI staff with the day to day running of the expedition. Non-GVI work placements will depend upon the needs of the partner and will be seasonally dependent, but you can expect to be involved in wildlife and habitat conservation or human dimensions of wildlife with local partners or rainforest lodge; putting the skills you learned in the first 10 weeks into practice and continuing to expand your horizons.

Intern Training Schedule

Spanish Language Courses

This internship provides two weeks of Spanish language course instruction suitable for those with no experience up to advanced level instruction. The course will mainly be based on conversational Spanish which will be vital for anyone looking to work with GVI or our partners in Latin America.

Sea Turtle Tagging Training

While there is no current worldwide certification for turtle tagging, proven experience is what most projects require and look for, GVI and our partners included. This internship gives applicants the opportunity to practice such skills including the application of Monel tags (for leatherback Dermochelys coriacea) or Inconel tags (for all other marine turtle species), depending on time of the year. Please note this opportunity is based both on the turles seasons and general movements, wherever possible theoretical and practical training will be given, but tagging in-field is not guaranteed.

GVI Health and Safety Workshop

Expert GVI staff will explain in detail all aspects of GVI H&S protocols, including Risk Assessments, EAPs (emergency action plans), relevant legislation and other aspects essential for working in the field, putting together your own expedition or looking after groups when overseas.

Work Opportunities

All internships include a volunteer work placement with GVI or a partner based upon the successful completion of the internship training during the first 10 weeks. Type and location of the work placement will be decided by field staff after the first 2 months but typical placements are with GVI as expedition staff members, with partner organizations conducting turtle and wildlife research, with the National Parks and also at rainforest lodges that which to expand their environmental responsibility.

After a successful internship (6 months), qualifying candidates may be given the opportunity to work for GVI or selected partner organisations in Costa Rica or in other countries around the world where GVI operate. Field work positions can be paid or unpaid, range in duration from one month to one year, and availability varies. Qualification for possible GVI positions is at the sole description of Global Vision International and takes into account but is not limited the following; Spanish language skills, leaderships skills, personal skills, H&S awareness, commitment to GVI and its partners, and conservation aims and objectives.

Interphase Break

During your internship you will have between 2 and 4 weeks break. This may fall before and / or during your work placement depending on time of year and work placement dates). This is also the period when you will travel to the colonial town of Granada or to the Capital City, Managua, Nicaragua to begin your two weeks of Spanish classes with GVI’s associate Spanish language school. For those longer interphase periods, qualifying interns will have a little downtime before beginning preparations at your work placement. During official downtime periods intern expenses are not covered by GVI.