USDA-ARS Forage Legume Breeding Internship

ARS Office/Lab and Location: A research opportunity is currently available with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), located at the U.S. Dairy Forage Research Center (USDA-ARS) in Madison, WI on the University of Wisconsin - Madison campus. The U.S. Dairy Forage Research Center provides scientific solutions to all aspects of U.S. dairy systems to make them more productive and profitable.

The Agricultural Research Service (ARS) is the U.S. Department of Agriculture's chief scientific in-house research agency with a mission to find solutions to agricultural problems that affect Americans every day from field to table. ARS will deliver cutting-edge, scientific tools and innovative solutions for American farmers, producers, industry, and communities to support the nourishment and well-being of all people; sustain our nation’s agroecosystems and natural resources; and ensure the economic competitiveness and excellence of our agriculture. The vision of the agency is to provide global leadership in agricultural discoveries through scientific excellence.

About the role

This opportunity will provide participants a hands-on experience in forage legume breeding. Participants will gain practical knowledge in all aspects of forage breeding including phenotypic and genotypic evaluation of plants, plant pollination and seed production, research plot establishment and evaluation, and greenhouse tasks associated with plant breeding.

Learning Objectives

• Participants will be trained in plant breeding techniques.
• Participate in breeding, plant handling, plant maintenance, pollination, and data collection activities.

Mentor

The mentor for this opportunity is Heathcliffe Riday (heathcliffe.riday@usda.gov). If you have questions about the nature of the research, please contact the mentor.

Schedule

Anticipated appointment start date: 2026. Start date is flexible and will depend on a variety of factors. The appointment will initially be for five months but may be renewed upon recommendation of ARS and is contingent on the availability of funds.

The appointment is full time or part time. The mentor is very flexible in terms of scheduling and number of hours spent with the project per week. Availability for full days during the growing season (Apr/May to Sep/Oct) during daylight hours will be necessary.

Pay

The participant will receive a monthly stipend ranging from $750.00 to $3,000.00, depending on educational level, experience, and level of participation.

Requirements

• The qualified candidate should be currently pursuing or have received an associate's or bachelor's degree in a relevant field. Degree must have been received within the past three years or anticipated to be received by the start of the appointment.
• U.S. citizenship is required.

Preferred Skills

• Interest in plant breeding.
• Ability to participate 40 hours per week during the growing season months (Apr/May to Sep/Oct).
• Interest in continuing participation part-time during (Nov to Mar).
• Current driver's license and own vehicle is preferred but not required.

Eligibility Requirements

• Citizenship: U.S. Citizen Only
• Degree: Associate's Degree or Bachelor's Degree received within the last 36 months or currently pursuing.
• Discipline(s): Life Health and Medical Sciences (Agricultural Sciences, Agriculture, Agronomy and Crop Science, Bioinformatics, Biology (General), Botany, Cellular and Molecular Biology, Computational Biology, Ecology, Evolutionary Biology, Genetics (including Genome Sciences), Horticulture, Plant Sciences).