Rouge Farm Corps Entry Level Internships

 

Are you looking to start a career in sustainable agriculture? The Rouge Farm Corps Internship Program is a great launching point for beginning farmers and ranchers with little or no previous experience.

 

The Internship Program is a full season entry-level residential program combining hands-on training and skills-based education in sustainable agriculture.

 

As an intern, you will live and train full-time on a host farm, receiving up to 1,500 hours of on-farm training and learning in-depth skills from your mentor. Your residential farm training experience is combined with farm tours, classes, and discussion circles throughout the region, as well as opportunities for independent study. Interns are exposed to a vast array of knowledge and expertise by engaging in the daily life of vibrant, agricultural communities.

 

 

The Internship is a hands-on learning experience. The vast majority of your time will be spent learning by doing. You will train alongside your mentor and independently to develop skills while accomplishing daily tasks that move your host farm along through the season.

 

Rogue Farm Corps works closely with farm mentors to provide you with a skill-based curriculum that is unique to your host farm.  Our Chapter Coordinators will conduct formal on-site evaluations with interns and host farmers to ensure that your education and training goals are being met.

 

 

To augment your training and learning at your host farm, you will join other interns in your local region for classes that teach practical skills as well as foundational concepts and knowledge, farm tours, discussion circles and potlucks throughout the agricultural region. These are led by Rogue Farm Corps staff, agricultural professionals, and expert farmers. You can expect a variety of teaching approaches and locations, from traditional classroom settings to experiential on-farm settings.

 

 

During the course of the farming season, every intern will complete an independent project, submit a report and make a short presentation at the end-of-season Closing Dinner. Examples of previous independent projects include raising a small flock of ducks for market, constructing a root crop storage room, developing recipe cards for market customers, and building an outdoor cob oven.

 

 

The Rouge Farm Corps Internship Program begins somewhere between March 15 and April 15 and concludes somewhere between October 15 and November 15 depending on your host farm.

 

Room, board, and stipend packages vary from farm to farm. In any case, you can expect safe, secure housing, farm-produced food and some staples, and a monthly stipend. Each host farmer determines the details.

 

To successfully complete the program, you will complete 1,000 to 1,500 hours of on-farm training time, submit weekly reflective journal entries, complete an independent project, and attend all outlined classes and farm tours.

 

 

The Internship Program has a tuition fee of $1,750.

 

Upon acceptance, interns  pay a $250 non-refundable deposit to secure their placement. An additional $500 payment is due at New Student Orientation. Two additional payments of $500 are due on June 15 and August 15.

 

Rouge Farm Corps will work with individual interns to set up a payment plan if requested in writing.

 

Your $1,750 tuition includes $500 for the educational event series, including instructor honoraria, materials and supplies, and other event costs, plus $1,250 for your Chapter Coordinator’s time spent on promotion, developing materials, facilitating orientations and evaluations, coordinating the event series, and administrative costs. Your Chapter Coordinator is available for on-going check-ins and support throughout the duration of your internship.

 

 

Once you begin the internship at a host farm, there is an initial 45-day trial period. During the trial period, interns and host farmers can terminate the internship without cause. Tuition fees are fully refundable during the 45-day trial period, with the exception of the $250 non-refundable deposit.

 

 

Before you start your application, please read the Student Intern Handbook. Here you will find a complete program description, including all requirements, policies, and expectations.

 

 

After you’ve read through the Student Intern Handbook, you are ready to fill out our application form. Early application period runs from November through January 15. Late application period runs from January 15 through March 15 and includes a $20 application fee.

 

Once we receive your application, Rogue Farm Corps staff will call or email you to complete your intake interview. If your application is approved, our network of host farmers will review all program applications and set up interviews with potential candidates for placement on their farm. Each host farmer will make final placement decisions for his or her farm. You may contact Rogue Farm Corps’ Education Director or Chapter Coordinators to discuss the status of your application at any time.