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A large part of many students' college experience is the process of fulfilling an internship. Different internship opportunities are available through ����Թ� State or outside of the university itself. For Honors College student Erin Bernhard (She/Her), the opportunity to do a summer internship was not something to pass up. As a senior Enviro

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nmental and Conservation Biology major, with a concentration in Environmental Policy and Management, and a minor in Sustainability, the internship opportunity let her travel and get out of her comfort zone. 

Erin found the internship through , which assists students by placing them in internships throughout the country and introducing them to the conservation of parks and public lands. When searching for her internship experience, Erin was assigned to Petersburg, Alaska, located on a small island in Southeast Alaska. She lived at and worked for the Petersburg Ranger District of the Tongass National Forest for 14 weeks over the summer of 2021.

To understand the impact in what she was doing and why she pursued an internship, Erin stated, “At the start of my college career, I was not sure of the career path that I wanted to pursue. I was interested in learning more about so many different topics and degrees, but was unsure which path would lead me to the most desirable job following graduation. I wanted to pursue an internship to be able to gain practical experience in my field, while also building connections with people who have been working in the field for a long time. In my mind, an internship would help me gain a better understanding of the types of jobs that I could pursue, and what I feel is most important to me in choosing a future job.”

During her time there, Erin’s role was an intern for Developed Recreation. In describing her role and what she did, she shared, “I was one of many interns on the recreation crew, and my specific job description involved the maintenance and upkeep of various different National Forest Service-owned recreation sites. I'd say 95% of my days were spent outside in the field, traveling to different sites in the Tongass National Forest. While most of my work was on Mitkof Island, I did also have the opportunity to frequently boat to other islands within the district to help with projects there. Much of my time was spent in the backcountry of Alaska's wilderness, with the occasional multi-day camping hitches at more remote sites. While the Developed Recreation position was my main objective, it was a very collaborative and flexible environment that allowed me to spend time each week coordinating projects with the trail crew, cabin crew, and wilderness ranger crews as well. This broadened my scope into helping with trail maintenance, wilderness surveying, invasive species management, and overall cabin maintenance - to name a few. I also had opportunities to work days with crews outside of the recreation crew in order to gain more experience in the field. Our supervisors were very supportive and helpful in helping us interns learn as much as we could about the field while gaining hands-on experience while we were there.”

With the internship being located outside of ����Թ� State campus and the state of Ohio, Erin said, “I found myself craving something different. I wanted to challenge myself and my comfort zone, and learn about a part of the world that was unfamiliar to me. Choosing to be an intern on an island in the middle of a temperate rainforest, with a population of 3,000 people seemed like the perfect place for me to learn and grow as a person.”

Noting the unknown of her future career path, she praised the process and how it has impacted her ����Թ� State journey, “This internship further validated the courses I was taking, and the importance of the topics discussed. Many of my courses along my degree path have referenced public lands, and the conservation efforts that protect them, but being able to be a part of these conservation efforts each day during work added a new level of meaning to the topics I have been learning about. I saw the impacts of logging and human impact firsthand, making these issues much more tangible than looking at photos on a screen.”

The process from start to finish of the internship lasted over the summer of 2021. As the pandemic impacts us and our experiences, Erin shared how the pandemic affected hers, “I was originally supposed to have my internship experience in the summer of 2020, but with the emergence of COVID-19 in the spring of that year, the internship was canceled. I was determined to fight for the chance to pursue this internship in the next year - COVID willing. I kept in contact with my supervisor, I expressed ongoing interest in the internship, and was offered the position in the following year. Being on a small, remote island where we mainly worked outside in small groups, we did not feel the effects of the pandemic as much as larger communities did.”

Through the entire process of traveling to a different state and learning in a new environment, Erin gave thanks to her friends and family who supported her through the process. In elaborating on her support system, Erin said, “They always empowered me to go outside of my comfort zone. Initially applying as a sophomore with little to no experience in the field, I remember being surprised when I got my first interview! The confidence that my family and friends had in me helped me gain confidence in myself and my abilities, which ultimately helped me obtain a position.”

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Coming back and having this experience under her belt, Erin is finishing up her final year of her undergraduate degree. The opportunity to serve as an intern in a location such as Alaska was life-changing for her. Explaining her takeaways from her experience, Erin stated, “I feel as though I could take away a positive learning experience from every aspect of my internship. I gained confidence in being able to adapt to a totally new environment, where I did not know a single person at the beginning of the summer. I became more confident in my communication skills and community building. During my final week in Alaska, my roommates (and fellow interns) and I reflected on all that we had learned over the summer, and the knowledge I gained was insurmountable. I went into the experience expecting to learn a lot, but I could have never predicted just how much I would learn. I felt as if I ended the experience as a completely different person. I never could have imagined how much personal and professional growth could occur in such a short amount of time.” 

 

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PHOTO CAPTION 1: Erin Bernhard and co-workers out on the water

PHOTO CAPTION 2: Erin Bernhard smiling outside

PHOTO CAPTION 3: Erin Bernhard and co-workers working in the forest

Media Contact: Stephanie Moskal, smoskal@kent.edu, 330-672-2312