"The program certainly helped my academic goals. The section I worked in (Monitoring) made its resources available to me for my classes as well as my thesis."
"...and the staff here at the DNR acted as colleagues and mentors as my worked needed reviewing."
"The program helped my academic goals tremendously. I learned more in the first six months than I had learned in several semesters at school."
"Working on environmental issues for 2 years certainly made a difference in meeting academic/professional goals as well as the computer and database skills I had to learn."
"I found in the job hunt that the practical experience was extremely valuable."
The Air Resources Management Student Internship and Research Program is an air resources practicum organized through the joint efforts of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the Gaylord Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, in cooperation with several related graduate departments on the UW-Madison campus. Its purpose is two-fold: first, to educate students for professional careers in air resources management; and second, to fund the graduate studies of students who are pursuing such careers. Under this program, students work as project assistants or interns in the Bureau of Air Management in the DNR.
Students interested in participating in the program must meet the following criteria: graduate standing or advanced undergraduate standing at a Wisconsin college or university; a serious interest in pursuing air resources as a professional career; and enrollment in, or intention of applying for admission to, an air-related graduate program.
Two types of appointments exist in ARMSIRP: project assistantships and internships. Project assistantships are available to UW-Madison graduate students enrolled in appropriate graduate programs. Internships are available to UW-Madison undergraduates and some non-UW-Madison graduate students. Each assistantship or internship requires a weekly work commitment of 10-15 hours from September through May and up to 40 hours during the summer at a DNR office, usually in the Madison area. Students earn monthly stipends from the university based on their percentage of full-time employment at the DNR. Project assistant appointments include a tuition waiver and health insurance. Internships for non-UW-Madison graduate students include health insurance; internships for undergraduates do not include any tuition or insurance benefits.
Historically positions have been available in many areas of the Bureau of Air Management but most students are currently working in two areas: construction/operation permits and compliance. Duties in the permitting positions include: conducting literature searches, assisting with locating appropriate emission factors, estimating emissions of air contaminants from air pollution sources, assisting with rule development, processing air permits under the direction of an experienced permit review engineer, assisting with data management activities, assisting with public information activities and preparations for permit workshops and seminars.
In the compliance section, interns review stack test reports and continuous emission monitor excess emission reports for accuracy and completeness. The interns also determine the molecular weight of stack gases, the flowrate of stack gases and the emission concentration and rate of various pollutants. Findings are to be delineated in a report.
Open positions are advertised via email to students in relevant programs, in classes by faculty, in the Nelson Institute's Graduate Funding New$, and occasionally at the UW Student Job Center. Interested students are encouraged to submit application materials at any time. Student information is kept on file and students are contacted when a position becomes available. A current resume, transcripts, and letter of interest can be submitted to Sara Lorence at the address below.
This program uses a two-step screening process for hiring. Candidates are screened initially by the director of ARMSIRP and may then be forwarded to the DNR for an interview. The DNR supervisor makes the final hiring decision.
Applicants who receive appointments as either project assistants or interns must be enrolled as students at a Wisconsin college or university and make satisfactory progress toward their degree. Graduate students are required to enroll in one credit of independent study related to air resources management with a faculty advisor each fall and spring semester. Undergraduates must register for one credit of independent study in either the fall or spring semester.
Over 85 students have participated in the Air Resources Management Student Internship & Research Program since it began in 1993. Students who hold assistantships and internships in ARMSIRP are required to participate in research or independent study credit as a part of their work experience. Often times students are able to combine their DNR work with a thesis topic; other times their independent study projects become DNR reports.
PDF of ARMSIRP thesis and project examples.
Air Resources Management Student Internship & Research Program
Erhard Joeres, Director
Sara Lorence, Graduate Admissions and Program Coordinator
Gaylord Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies
University of Wisconsin-Madison
70 Science Hall, 550 N. Park Street
Madison, WI 53706
Phone: 608.262.7996
Fax: 608.262.2273