Veterinary Student Externships

IIAD offers four unpaid externships each year for veterinary students and students in veterinary public health—two positions in the spring and two in the fall. Summer placements may also be approved when scheduling permits.

Each externship lasts a minimum of four weeks and may be completed in person at IIAD headquarters, virtually, or in a hybrid format. Additional approvals from Texas A&M AgriLife Research may be required.

Depending on a student’s learning objectives, externs may participate in a wide variety of Institute activities focused on animal health risk prevention and response within the One Health sector, including but not limited to:

  • Participation in current IIAD projects, such as biosurveillance, epidemiology, diagnostics, and capacity‑building programs.
  • Tours of local laboratories and facilities relevant to IIAD’s mission.
  • Networking opportunities with IIAD’s extensive network of partners and collaborators—including epidemiologists, veterinarians, public health professionals, and experts across IIAD, The Texas A&M University System, and domestic and international partner organizations (many of whom are former IIAD externs).
  • Proposal development training, including support for preparing domestic and international grant proposals.
  • Assisting with educational and outreach efforts, such as:
    • Developing or updating training materials for domestic and international capacity‑building programs
    • Supporting the creation of outreach products (e.g., fact sheets, briefings, guidance documents, online content)
    • Helping prepare or deliver workshops, webinars, or presentations for stakeholder groups
    • Contributing to youth and graduate‑level learning activities related to animal health and One Health
    • Assisting with evaluation and feedback processes for existing outreach programs
  • Business operations experience, such as project administration, communications support, meeting preparation, data organization, or other administrative processes aligned with the student’s goals.

How to Apply

Please complete the externship application and submit it along with your CV to Laura Peterson — laura.peterson@ag.tamu.edu. Applications without a CV will not be considered.