Applications are welcomed and encouraged from all qualified individuals regardless of background and identity. A one-page cover letter is required for consideration for this position and should be attached as the first page of your resume in a single pdf file. The cover letter should address your specific interest in the position and outline skills and experiences that directly relate to it. 

This is a student summer internship position with the Campus Farm at Matthaei Botanical Gardens and Nichols Arboretum. The Campus Farm Native Plants Intern will work with the Associate Curator and Campus Farm staff to establish native plants within and around the Campus Farm landscape, with the aim of promoting pollinator diversity, beneficial insects, and regenerative agriculture. The intern will be an integral part of the Campus Farm team and participate in Campus Farm activities. They will also coordinate the involvement of the Campus Farm team in assisting with native plantings and maintenance. The MBGNA summer internship takes place Monday, May 5 to Friday, August 22, 2025.  In order to fully participate in team collaboration and project work, the selected candidate is expected to complete all dates of the internship. Occasional evening and weekend work may be required.

Learning Objectives

Learning Objectives

The MBGNA summer internship provides university-level students with opportunities to:

• Participate in experiential learning in a nature-based organization
• Directly contribute to strategic operations of a mission-driven organization
• Help unify and catalyze equity and justice across lands, waters, and dynamic systems

Matthaei Botanical Gardens and Nichols Arboretum (MBGNA) is a transformative force for social and ecological resilience through the waters and lands we steward. 

We turn this commitment into action by:

• Positioning humans as active participants within the natural world and compelling the university community and our publics to negotiate the full complexity that entails
• Advancing partnerships, programs, user experience, and all that we steward to catalyze equity and justice in a radically changing world
• Emerging as University of Michigan's premier partner for research, teaching, and public impact in sustainability, climate-forward practices, and biocultural diversity
• Promoting healthier communities, cultures, and ecosystems through active care and cultivation of the gardens, fields, natural habitats, and dynamic systems that sustain our world.

MBGNA seeks to recruit and retain a diverse workforce as a reflection of our commitments to serve the diverse people of Michigan and sustain the excellence of the University of Michigan.

For more information about MBGNA and the summer internship program, please visit: https://mbgna.umich.edu/summer-internships 

For questions about the internship application, please contact:
MBGNAinternships@umich.edu 

This internship position is part of the UM Campus Farm at MBGNA. As part of the Campus Farm team, this position will regularly interact with UM students and staff, community partners, and other MBGNA departments during the course of a workday.  

This internship position will support the goals of the UM Campus Farm through the following: 

• Growing, planting, and caring for native plants 
• Preparing planting sites
• Removing overly competitive, non-native plants
• Collecting, cleaning, storing, and dispersing native plant seed
• Participating in Campus Farm activities as assigned.
• Estimate of duties: 75% native plant care, 25% campus farm

• Applicants must have one year of experience enrolled in a college or university by the internship start date. Recent college graduates who earned a degree in December 2024 or are planning to earn a degree by May 2025 are eligible to apply. 
• This position may require a valid driver's license and a motor vehicle record check in order to operate MBGNA vehicles.
• Coursework and experience in identification of herbaceous plants.
• Coursework and experience in agroecology, horticulture, botany, ecology, soil ecology, and related subjects.
• Willingness to work outdoors in all weather conditions.
• Willingness to do physical work.
• Ability and willingness to work in an inclusive and team-oriented way with diverse audiences, partner organizations, and programs involved with the Campus Farm.
• Must have a flexible schedule with weekend and evening availability.

Hours Per Week / Days Per Week

40 hours per week / 5 days per week

Includes occasional evening and weekend work

MBGNA comprises 841 total acres, spanning across four sites, including the gardens, arboretum, a bog, and natural areas.  This internship takes place mainly at the UM Campus Farm at Matthaei Botanical Gardens, 1800 N. Dixboro Rd, Ann Arbor, MI 48105. 

Positions that are eligible for hybrid or mobile/remote work mode are at the discretion of the hiring department. Work agreements are reviewed annually at a minimum and are subject to change at any time, and for any reason, throughout the course of employment. Learn more about the work modes.

Compensation: $15.00/hour

The MBGNA internship application will be open Wednesday, January 15 - Sunday, March 2, 2025.  Applications will be reviewed after the internship application closes.  Selected candidates will be contacted for interviews beginning Monday, March 10, 2025.  Final candidates will be notified by March 31, 2025. 

The University of Michigan is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer.