Are you interested in a career within the life sciences? Sustainability? Environmental education? Do you want a supportive workspace with opportunities for professional development and growth? Then an internship with UF/IFAS Extension Sarasota County sounds perfect for you. It’s certainly an experience I will never forget.
How to Apply
Applying to an internship at this office or within Sarasota County’s portal will put you into the same program. Here’s an example of what the job posting will look like on LinkedIn:
You can also apply at https://www.scgov.net/government/internships, which will redirect you to the county’s Workday page.
Internship Benefits
Now that you know how to apply to the UF/IFAS Extension Sarasota County internship experience, let’s talk about its benefits. To begin, the internship has competitive wages. You get to keep your professional headshot and get assigned a mentor to guide you through the internship. This mentor can help guide you in the rest of your professional career. Interns also get to attend six different, in-person, professional development events. These include:
- Civics 101 & Facility Tour
- Own Your Career
- Business Etiquette & Professional Networking
- Philanthropy & Your Career
- Be the BOCC: Government in Action – Board of County Commission Public Hearing Session
- Speaking for Success
At the UF/IFAS Extension office, the benefits continue. Not only is the staff extremely welcoming and understanding, but supervisors trust their interns with real, lasting work. I highly recommend applying if you want to make an impact.
Who am I to tell you all of this? Well, my name is Erin Nadel, and I am a rising senior at the University of Florida. I am currently serving as a 2025 environmental education and outreach intern for the 4-H program within the UF/IFAS Extension Office.
How to Succeed
Let’s talk about numbers.
This year, about 3,000 applicants applied for this internship program. 30 were accepted. Put your best foot forward in the application process. For my internship, there were two interview rounds. My best advice is to be present, do your research, be punctual, and be prepared. That will lead you to interviewing success.
This internship lasts for 12 weeks and has 40-hour workweeks. Be prepared to be a real, contributing member of the team.
During this internship, I supported my program in the following manner:
- graphic and social content support
- newsletter management (Mailchimp)
- educational program support
- workshop presentations
- youth mentoring and chaperoning
- data organization
- blog creation (13)
- project management
- interviewing
My Projects
I was able to lead two projects.
The first was a water and livestock interactive record book. 4-H youth members use record books to track important checkpoints for their yearlong projects, many of which involve raising livestock. The record book goes into the history of water in Florida, how to improve the water quality of 4-Hers’ farms to protect their livestock and the surrounding watershed, and what specific water levels different animals need at various stages of their lives. The goal of the book is to educate on the importance of using water sustainably within agriculture.
This is especially important in states like Florida that are facing increasing threats to their water supply. This record book also fills a gap in 4-H education. We could not find educational materials within 4-H that focus on important topics like this, making Sarasota County a leader in that aspect. I created multiple graphics for the record book, as well as a tri-fold poster for tabling events.
My next project focused on 4-H alumni. I interviewed prominent 4-H Sarasota alumni and highlighted their experiences in blogs. I also created a 16-question survey to share with other alumni. My survey received 10 responses. Out of those responses, every single responder said they use some, if not all, of 4-H’s life skills in their lives today. I also built one website to ensure that data from the survey was easily accessible and intelligible (visit erinnadel.my.canva.site/sarasota-4-h-alumni).
Besides my project, I was able to help lead eight different programs/interaction points with youth. Some highlights included helping with All-Star Lucky Clovers, iLEAD, 4-H University, Colonial Oaks’ summer camp, YMCA programming, and Suncoast Kids.
When the 2026 interns come in, the 4-H Exploring Your Environment summer camp at our office will be held in June 15-19 and 22-26.
Take Advantage of Opportunities
This county has many different exciting departments. Take advantage of shadowing opportunities. Some of my favorites from this summer include going on a sea turtle night walk with the Parks, Recreation, and Natural Resources department and shadowing the County Attorney Office.
Conclusion
From all of this, I hope you have gained an interest in applying to this internship. I can honestly say that this internship has helped me along my path to becoming an environmental professional, and I am sure it will help you. Thank you to my supervisor, Sarah Davis, for her never-ending transparency and support. I always knew what was needed of me, and if I had questions, she was more than happy to take the time to answer them. I also want to thank my mentor, Armando Ubeda, who gave me fantastic advice on how to improve my resume and what to look out for in the job space as I continue my career.
Thank you also to Kyle Perkins, Evelyn Spencer, Erin Peterson, Sophie Hovis, AJai Hilton, Valeria Yon, Zahir Ringgold Cordes, Casey McCabe, Michael D’Imperio, Kayla Kennedy, Michelle Marinangel, Jackie Lebouitz, Katie Keenan-Erenati, Randall Penn, Sara Kane, Tabitha Baldwin, Kevin O’Horan, and Lee Hayes Byron. You all left a positive impact on me during my time in this office, and I will always be grateful for that. The biggest thank you goes to my family and friends. Without your support this summer, I don’t know what I would’ve done.
2026 Internship opportunities will be posted here: scgov.net/government/internships
1
