Bioacoustics Research Internship in the Marine Sensory and Neurobiology Lab at 
USCB

Need: Fish/marine mammal bioacoustic interns for spring / summer 2020.

Organization: Marine Sensory and Neurobiology Lab, Department of Natural 
Sciences, University of South Carolina Beaufort (Supervisor Dr. Eric Montie).

About Our Lab: Our research lab strives to understand the sensory and 
neurobiology of marine organisms. The more applied part of our research program 
focuses on studies that investigate how natural and human-made stressors impact 
marine life. These stressors include changes in water quality, noise pollution, 
and climate change. Currently, we use long-term passive acoustics to monitor 
estuarine soundscapes. Our research involves work with wild marine organisms 
like snapping shrimp, oyster toadfish, silver perch, black drum, spotted 
seatrout, red drum, and bottlenose dolphins.

Position Information: April 1st to August 28th, 2020; Interns are expected to 
commit to ~30 hours per week, Monday through Friday, days and hours are 
flexible. There is no compensation and interns are responsible for finding 
their own housing and transportation to campus. The internship is designed for 
undergraduates or recent graduates who want to gain research experience in 
marine ecology with a focus on bioacoustics, fish, and marine mammals. This is 
a great opportunity to work with scientists and graduate students in the field 
and lab while gaining experience with passive acoustics, deploying/retrieving 
recorders, invertebrate and fish sampling, photo-identification and boat-based 
marine mammal surveys. USCB offers a Masters of Computational Science for those 
interested in bioacoustics and signal detection 
(https://www.uscb.edu/academics/academic_departments/school-of-science-and-mathematics/computer-science/csci-graduate.html),
 and Dr. Montie serves as an adjunct in the College of Charleston Graduate 
Program in Marine Biology 
(http://marinebiology.cofc.edu/about-the-program/faculty-listing/montie-eric.php).
 Thus, successful interns may have future opportunities for graduate study at 
USCB or CoC.

Location: This position is located at the University of South Carolina 
Beaufort, Bluffton campus. Bluffton, SC is located only 20 minutes from Hilton 
Head Island, SC. The campus is 10 minutes from the May River and 15 minutes 
from the Atlantic Ocean.

Duties Will Include:
(1) Reviewing and analyzing passive acoustic data.
(2) Assisting in larval and juvenile fish sampling using seine nets.
(3) Participating in bottlenose dolphin abundance, distribution, and 
photo-identification surveys.
(4) Helping with the deployment/retrieval of instruments.
(5) Assisting graduate and undergraduate students with their research projects.

Qualifications:

*         Minimum age of 18 years old;

*         Recently enrolled in a college-level program in marine biology, 
biology, zoology, or related field;

*         Strong interest in passive acoustics, fish, marine mammals, and 
conservation;

*         Experience with Adobe Audition, Word, Excel, Powerpoint, ArcGIS, and 
MATLAB is a plus;

*         Boat experience is preferred but not mandatory (successful interns 
will be required to take an online Boating Safety Course);

*         Excellent verbal communication skills, fluent in English;

*         Enthusiastic and dedicated with a strong ability to interact with 
others and be professional;

*         Responsible with a great work ethic and attention to detail;

*         Works well with a team and individually;

*         Ability to work long days in the sun/heat/cold on a small boat;

*         Must be a US citizen due to challenging USC paperwork.

How to Apply: Please submit an email to Dr. Eric Montie 
([email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>) with the subject "USCB Internship". 
Please attach one pdf file to the email and name according to the following 
format (i.e. Lastname_USCBapp_spring 2020). The application (pdf document) 
should include (i) a cover letter describing why you are interested in the 
position, how the experience will help you meet your long-term goals, and your 
dates of availability (~1 page); (ii) curriculum vitae describing your relevant 
training and experiences as well as names and contact information of two 
references; and (iii) current academic transcripts (unofficial are sufficient). 
The application period ends on March 6th, 2020.

Eric W. Montie, M.S., Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Biology
Director of the Marine Sensory and Neurobiology Lab &
The Lowcountry Dolphin Conservation Program
Department of Natural Sciences
University of South Carolina Beaufort
One University Boulevard
Bluffton, SC 29909

Office Phone: (843) 208-8107
Fax: (843) 208-8294
Email: [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>
https://www.uscb.edu/montie
http://marinebiology.cofc.edu/about-the-program/faculty-listing/montie-eric.php
https://www.facebook.com/MarineNeuroLabAtUSCB/


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