Ecosystems of STEM Careers Programs - Summer 2026
The Raptor Center provides funded summer opportunities for middle school and high school students!
The Raptor Center offers opportunities for Saint Paul and Minneapolis public middle and high schoolers to engage with their local ecosystems and the STEM professionals who research and protect them. These “Ecosystems of STEM Careers” grant-funded programs are hosted primarily on the St Paul campus, and also include visits to local conservation sites. High school students can apply for our month-long paid internship, and middle school students can enroll in week-long summer-camp style workshops. During each of these programs, we hear from conservation professionals who support animal, water, and ecosystem health and engage in hands-on investigations of outdoor spaces. High School interns also research and present their own conservation project.
These programs are grant-funded and thus only available to students to attend public school in Minneapolis or St. Paul proper. We are not able to make exceptions at this time.
High School Internship Program
During summer 2026, The Raptor Center hosted a cohort of 10 high school interns from St Paul and Minneapolis schools. This “Ecosystems of STEM Careers” program was focused on exploring careers in conservation, including topics like land management, wildlife rehabilitation, and captive animal care. Throughout their month-long internship, these students heard from guest speakers, explored hands-on opportunities with experts, and created their own conservation projects. The goal of these projects was for each intern to dive deeper into a topic that they thought their local community should know more about. Interns selected their topics, researched them, and created the following posters, website, and zine. On the last day of their internship, they presented their projects to an audience of their friends, family, and Raptor Center staff. Take a look at what they created!
High School Internship Program (Summer 2026 Details)
The application has closed for this year's program
We are excited to host a month-long internship opportunity for a cohort of 10 public high school and public tuition-free charter school students.
Program Details:
- 4 week program (June 15th - July 10th, University-observed holidays on 6/19 and 7/3). Students must be able to commit to the entire program.
- 9:00 am to 3:00 pm, Monday - Friday
- Lunch is provided once a week, during off-site field trips
- 4 off-site field trips
- Paid, $18/hour
- Open to public school students in Minneapolis and Saint Paul entering 10th-12th grade
Application Review Timeline:
- Friday, April 3rd, 2026 (11:59 pm) - Application Closes
- Early April 2026 - Application Review Begins
- Mid April 2026 - Candidate Interviews
- Late April 2026 - Candidates Selected
Middle School Workshop Program (Summer 2026 Details)
Week-long summer-camp-style workshop! Registration has ended.
Program Details:
- Free of cost
- 9:00 am to 3:00 pm, Monday - Friday
- One off-site field trip with lunch provided
- Open to public school students in Minneapolis and Saint Paul entering 6th-8th grades
- Participants can only register for one of the four weeks
Funding for this project is provided by the Cargill Foundation, which supports STEM Education programs that increase equitable access and participation in STEM.