Sharks Internship
Location: New York Aquarium
Department: Animal
Duration & Schedule: Winter or Spring 2026 (January-May) Some roles may begin in January, others in February/March please indicate your preference in your cover letter.
- Current students: 3 days per week for 20 weeks or 4 days per week for 15 weeks
- Non-students (including recent graduates): 4 days per week for 10 weeks, or 5 days per week for 10 weeks.
Stipend: $1,280-$2,000 approximate total stipend (range based on schedule variations) to be paid as one lump sum upon completion of the position, less applicable taxes.
Application Deadline: Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis but must be received by December 15, 2025; the position may be filled before the deadline. Candidates are encouraged to apply early.
Overview:
The New York Aquarium Shark Internship is an in depth program for future animal care professionals that focuses on the essential skills and knowledge necessary to enter the competitive field of aquatic animal husbandry. This program offers hands-on experience in our ‘Ocean Wonders: SHARKS!’ exhibit caring for various shark, ray, sea turtle, and saltwater teleost species.
Candidates will work alongside animal care staff to learn skills pertaining to aquatic animal husbandry. This includes dietary preparation, quarantine procedures, exhibit and life support maintenance, record keeping, feeding, and the fundamentals of training and enrichment. Interns will also have the opportunity to observe routine veterinary procedures and animal transfers.
Learning Outcomes:
- Interns will learn the scientific concepts that are vital to keeping animals in an aquarium environment.
- Interns will understand concepts of aquarium system design, filtration, and water quality maintenance and problem solving. A large focus will be placed on animal husbandry including dietary needs, overall animal health and observations, operant conditioning, enrichment, quarantine procedures, and record keeping.
- Interns will complete reading assignments and conclude their internship with a project that will be presented to the animal care staff.
Eligibility Requirements:
- Rising college junior or above
- Current college student or recent graduate
- Proficiency in swimming
- Can make the schedule commitment outlined above with the ability to work weekends and holidays
- Interest in pursuing a career working with sharks and rays
- Able to work well in a busy and fast-paced environment
- Physically able to perform laborious tasks in extreme weather conditions
- Be able to lift 50 lbs
- Able to complete all daily tasks independently
- Provide own housing and transportation
- Provide one letter of recommendation (preferably from a previous animal care experience)
- Must be eligible to work in the United States
Important Information about the Application
To be fully considered for this role, applicants must upload both a resume and cover letter. Applicants must also submit a letter of recommendation (preferably from a previous animal care facility or coworker) which can be added to the same document as your cover letter. In order to combine your cover letter and recommendation letter into the same file, check out these free PDF merge options: https://www.adobe.com/acrobat/online/merge-pdf.html or https://smallpdf.com/merge-pdf or https://www.sodapdf.com/
