Internship / Practicum in Fisheries Science

Purpose
Future fisheries scientists and managers need hands on experience working with coastal resources, constituents and communities. Through a new internship program, students can learn about all aspects of marine fisheries, from the decision fishers make as to what fish to catch to how species are managed and marketed to consumers in Oregon and throughout the nation. This program has been developed by the combined efforts of Oregon State University, Oregon SeaGrant, the Coastal Oregon Marine Experiment Station, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, NOAA-Fisheries Northwest Fisheries Science Center, and Industry cooperators including the Oregon Trawl Commission, the Port Liaison Project, and the West Coast Seafood Processors Association.

Typical internships will include:

Sea Safety Training
Normally only available to commercial fishermen, fisheries observers, and scientific crew, trained staff will teach you the basics of survival in the northeast Pacific, including how to fight fires, make distress calls, deploy emergency signals, don and use a survival suit, and deploy and enter a life raft.

Ship Time
Gain ship time aboard multiple fishing vessels that operate in a variety of fisheries, with individual trips lasting from one day to one week. Multiple trips are encouraged. Learn from captains and crew how seasons, weather, markets, and regulations affect what they fish for and when, all the while learning how gears are worked and catch processed.

Fisheries will include:

Salmon Tuna
Shrimp Whiting
Groundfish Halibut
Blackcod (sablefish)
Dungeness crab

Research, monitoring, and policy
Work with scientists at the Oregon Department of Fisheries and Wildlife as they conduct research on the marine fishes of the Oregon coast. Conduct port sampling of both the commercial and recreational catch, the foundation upon which fisheries datasets are based. Job shadow ODFW policy makers as data are analyzed and management recommendations are made. Follow recommendations as they move through the Council process at the Pacific Fisheries Management Council while fisheries regulations are debated and set.

Gear manufacturing
Learn manufacturing techniques and maintenance procedures for gear used in West coast fisheries.

Shoreside processing
Learn the ins and outs of processing the catch, from offloading fish at the dock to how sales and market decisions are made

Gain Practical Experience
Internships will offer practical experience in all aspects of fisheries and fisheries management. Individual experiences are flexible and can be around the interests of the student, but are designed to represent the entire industry from casting off the docks to making quota decisions for upcoming seasons. Timing is flexible, with the intent that internships will run from as early as April through mid-October.

For more information, contact:

Dr. Scott Heppell
Department of Fisheries and Wildlife
104 Nash Hall
Oregon State University
Corvallis, OR 97331
Scott.Heppell@oregonstate.edu