Marine Ecology & Conservation Internship

There is no substitute for an internship for enhancing your knowledge, skills and confidence in the water. At Big Blue Conservation, alongside our speciality courses, we are proud to offer opportunities to gain real-world experience in working on the front line in marine conservation through our long-term internships lead by our resident Marine Biologist. During your Marine Ecology and Conservation Internship, you’ll be a core part of the Big Blue Team, working on our existing research projects, participating in educational events and safeguarding the reefs. We only accept a limited number of students for these internships, and thus the quality of your education is second to none. Passionate about a certain aspect of biology or want to develop specific techniques for future endeavours or college projects? Don’t hesitate to ask us, we tailor these internships to you.

Classroom Sessions

During the Marine Ecology and Conservation internship, you’ll participate in 15 lectures/seminars that will start to introduce you to the complexities of the marine environment.  You’ll learn about the most common threats facing today’s marine ecosystems as well as what you can do to help protect the oceans.  You’ll also learn about the ecology of the ocean’s coral reefs and the animals that live within them, and why this fragile environment is so key to the health of our planet.  The classroom sessions included in your course will pave the way for understanding the marine environment of the Gulf of Thailand.

In our hands-on seminars, we’ll work with and discuss methods of conservation and their feasibility in island communities.  And you can be sure that the methods and theories you learn with Big Blue Conservation are the most recent since our in-house marine biologist is at the forefront of the most innovative marine research.

Classroom sessions can be focused on any of the following topics; coral reef community ecology, coral taxonomy and physiology, sharks and rays, marine turtles, climate change and pollution, marine diseases, or artificial reef building and maintenance.

Practical Sessions

The Marine Ecology and Conservation internship includes unlimited practical sessions that will get you out diving in the ocean, putting your new knowledge and skills into real-life application.  Practical diving sessions can be centred around a variety of activities such as maintenance dives on our artificial nursery reef*, clean up dives and plastic survey dives, whale shark/sea turtle photo ID, or Coral Watch survey dives.

*Due to recent changes in regulations from the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR), volunteers – including internship participants – cannot transplant coral without first having received special training from the DMCR.  However, our conservation interns can still assist in artificial reef activities in other capacities.

What you need to bring

In order to get the most out of your internship time with Big Blue Conservation, we recommend that you have the following equipment:

• mask
• snorkel
• fins
• diving computer

Don’t have everything on that list?  No problem!  We’ll point you towards Drift, our retail store in the heart of Sairee Beach.  It has everything you could possibly need for a conservation internship – or just a trip to the beach!

Additional dives during your conservation internship week will also include:

• Marine animal observation night dive
• Practice survey dive
• Artificial reef introduction dive
• Artificial reef maintenance dive

Dive equipment rental, boat and tank fees, course certification fee, and eco pack cost are all included in the main cost for the program.

Accommodation, food, travel, and airfare are not included in the program cost.

To participate in the Conservation Internship or any of our other ecology courses/programs you must be an advanced diver or higher and have had diving experience within the last 6 months.

Don’t forget! Because of the extra nitrogen your body builds up while scuba diving, you cannot fly within 24hrs of your last dive.

Are you fit to dive?

Scuba diving is an activity that requires a certain level of physical health. Read this medical questionnaire. If you can answer yes to any of the questions you may require medical clearance to enrol in a diving course. Contact us for more information.