MBARI and the California Academy of Sciences inspire the next generation of scientists

MBARI and the California Academy of Sciences inspire the next generation of scientists Education and outreach are central to MBARI’s mission of advancing marine science and engineering to understand our changing ocean. Our Summer Internship Program introduces students to careers in marine science, engineering, and education through an immersive internship with an MBARI mentor and networking with local science organizations.MBARI’s Summer Internship Program provides opportunities for undergraduate students to network with their peers, including research interns from the California Academy of Sciences’ Summer Systematics Institute. Image: Calista Kerba © 2026 MBARIOn July 23, MBARI hosted research interns from the Summer Systematics Institute program at the California Academy of Sciences, giving our summer interns the opportunity to meet fellow undergraduate students researching topics like anthropology, botany, geology, invertebrate zoology, and scientific illustration. Five Summer Systematics Institute interns and four California Academy of Sciences staff toured MBARI’s research facilities to learn about advanced underwater robotics, applying artificial intelligence to ocean exploration, and operations aboard a state-of-the-art research vessel. This was the third summer MBARI has hosted interns from the Summer Systematics Institute program.On July 29, MBARI’s 13 summer interns visited the California Academy of Sciences to tour their research collections and museum in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, learning about opportunities in museum-based research.Launched in 1996, MBARI’s Summer Internship Program is more than a traditional research experience. Open to undergraduate, graduate, and early-career professionals—including international candidates and educators—the 10-week paid internship is designed to help the next generation of marine researchers discover their passions, from marine biology and robotics to data science and communications.For more than 30 years, the California Academy of Sciences’ Summer Systematics Institute has addressed critical topics at the intersection of science and society, such as threats to biodiversity, the origins and diversification of life, phylogenetic systematics, and evolutionary biology. This 10-week paid research internship offers students important insights into the contributions that museum-based research can make to issues facing society today.MBARI and the California Academy of Sciences have a long history of collaboration that extends beyond our internship programs. MBARI scientists frequently engage expert taxonomists from the California Academy of Sciences to identify deep-sea animals, and many of the specimens documenting MBARI’s species discoveries are housed in the museum’s scientific collections. MBARI’s Summer Internship Program is generously supported through a gift from the Dean and Helen Witter Family Fund and the Rentschler Family Fund in memory of the late Frank Roberts, a founding member of MBARI’s Board of Directors, with additional support from the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, Dalio Philanthropies, and the Maxwell/Hanrahan Foundation. The California Academy of Sciences’ Summer Systematics Institute is made possible by the National Science Foundation Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU), the Robert T. Wallace Endowment for Undergraduate Education, the Maxwell Hanrahan Foundation, the Dorothy Tapper Goldman Foundation, and Barbara Bakar.For additional information or images relating to this article, please email pressroom@mbari.org. Share Like this? Share it! Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn Share on Email News MBARI researchers use innovative technology to map California’s famous Octopus Garden News Brief 08.03.26