Veterinary, Wildlife & Marine Conservation Internship

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Location

Greece
- Thessaloniki
- Athens

Length

2 to 12 weeks

Project Types

Need-based funding, Merit-based funding, General grants/scholarships, Payment plans, 529 Plan eligibility, Work study, Work exchange, Sliding scale fees, LGBTQIA+ funding, BIPOC funding

Health & Safety

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Program Details

Language

English

Age Min.

Age Max

Timeframe

Short Term Spring Break Summer Winter Year Round

Housing

Apartment Lodge

Groups

Small Group (1-15)

Travel Type

Budget Older Travelers Solo Women

Pricing

Starting Price

1900

Price Details

Fees:
2-weeks $1,900
3-weeks $2,500
4-weeks $3,100
Programs are available for up to 12-weeks

Deposit (non-refundable): $250 paid upon acceptance to the program. The remaining fees are paid not less than sixty (60) calendar days prior to the internship start date

The program cost includes:

24/7 in-country support
Airport pickup
Fully furnished shared accommodation
Hospital/clinic reference letter
Local English speaking coordinator
Personalized shadowing plan
Program & city orientation

The program cost does not include:
Travel to/from Greece, meals, major medical insurance, and all personal expenses and anything else not mentioned.

What's Included

Accommodation Airport Transfers Some Meals Wifi

What's Not Included

Activities Some Activities Airfare Domestic Airfare Equipment Meals SIM cards Travel Insurance Visa

Last Updated: May 21, 2025

Last Reviewed: Feb 10, 2025

Wish List

16 travelers are looking at this program

About Program

If you are passionate for the environment and wildlife conservation, then this program is tailored just for you. This is your chance to get hands-on on caring for wild animals coupled with the change of exploring Greece. You will participate in a work experience program that is designed as a holistic experience in learning & living the every day life in a wildlife conservation organization or a veterinary clinic.

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Video and Photos

Volunteers at veterinary assisting a bird

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Diversity & Inclusion 💙

BIPOC Support

Each participant’s identity may present challenges and questions, in addition to opportunities, when immersing in a new and different culture. Exploring a new culture can sometimes lead to experiencing a cultural shock as some places have different cultural norms, ranging levels of racial/ ethnic diversity, and are less aware or not so “politically correct” as your home country might be. Cerca Abroad strictly adheres to a non-discrimination policy of not denying any person access to, or participation in or the benefits of, or be discriminated against in any service, program, course or facility on the basis of race, color, creed, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, ancestry, disability, pregnancy, marital or parental status, physical condition or developmental disability.

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LGBTQIA+ Support

All our staff & local host teams are welcoming and inclusive of the LGBTQAI+ community, making our programs LGBTQAI+ friendly. Cerca Abroad strictly adheres to a non-discrimination policy of not denying any person access to, or participation in or the benefits of, or be discriminated against in any service, program, course or facility on the basis of race, color, creed, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, ancestry, disability, pregnancy, marital or parental status, physical condition or developmental disability.

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Neurodivergent Support

Cerca Abroad welcomes and supports participants that are Differently-abled/neurodivergent and offers a range of internship abroad programs that are specifically adapted to host interns. Although participants with neurodivergency have successfully participated in our programs, due to the nature of the abroad programs, the degree of access varies based on the activities, location and available infrastructure. Hence, at the application stage it is important to discuss with your Cerca Abroad program manager the program’s accessibility aspects and requirements. Cerca Abroad strictly adheres to a non-discrimination policy of not denying any person access to, or participation in or the benefits of, or be discriminated against in any service, program, course or facility on the basis of race, color, creed, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, ancestry, disability, pregnancy, marital or parental status, physical condition or developmental disability.

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Accessibility Support

Cerca Abroad welcomes and supports participants that have limited mobility conditions (including wheelchair users) and offers a range of internship abroad programs that are specifically adapted to host interns. Although participants with limited mobility have successfully participated in our programs, due to the nature of the abroad programs, the degree of access varies based on the activities, location and available infrastructure. Hence, at the application stage it is important to discuss with your Cerca Abroad program manager the program’s accessibility aspects and requirements. Cerca Abroad strictly adheres to a non-discrimination policy of not denying any person access to, or participation in or the benefits of, or be discriminated against in any service, program, course or facility on the basis of race, color, creed, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, ancestry, disability, pregnancy, marital or parental status, physical condition or developmental disability.

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Impact 🌎

Sustainability

Our steps towards creating a responsible experience

- We only work with registered organizations that have proven record of sustainable & ethical practices and long-term expertise in their field
- We collect feedback from all our participants and our host sites to continuously improve our participant’s experience
- We regularly visit our host sites to offer support/training, to evaluate processes/costs and provide transparent and affordable programs
- We review and evaluate each intern application and check their qualifications, criminal background and medical status for eligibility and suitability
- We ensure that our participants’ work does not impact the employment opportunities of the local community
- We refrain from overcrowding our host sites with participants and allocating only those that are needed
- All participants are requested to sign a Code of Conduct prior to arrival, which is designed to protect all stakeholders from inappropriate behavior or abuse
- Participants that breach ours or the host site’s Terms and Conditions and Code of Conduct will be removed without refund
- We take extra care allocating participants in sites that involve the care of others as well as animals

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Ethical Impact

We are committed to support our participants to create a positive impact on the local communities in parallel to their learning and developing activities abroad. Recognizing and evaluating ethical issues promotes responsible traveling which translates to a positive impact on the host communities and our interns. The relationships that are formed, the exchanged ideas, the local economy that is revived, the hands-on project that our participants contribute on, all leave a lasting a sustainable impact in each host site.

Our aim is to present realistic expectations to our participants, be honest and transparent on how we operate and use feedback from our interns and host sites to improve our processes and services. We remain committed to create a positive impact, whether it is with our stance for the environment (by becoming carbon neutral) up to working with hosts with similar values.

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Program Highlights

Shadow veterinarians in Greece for up to 40 hours per week
Hands-on Marine Conservation Internship
Hands-on Wildlife Conservation Internship
Participate in the daily routine providing medical care to land/marine mammals, reptiles & birds from all over the world.
Explore Greece and the surrounding islands

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Marine Conservation Internship

Marine Conservation Internship: This is an in-country hands-on internship program with provided shared housing and local team support. This internship will involve tasks around 9 core teams (marine mammal research & conservation, marine ecology, GIS & remote sensing, environmental law & policy, terrestrial research & conservation, microplastic and laboratory projects, Aegean Marine Life Sanctuary, Media, PR & graphic design, environmental education).

Wildlife Conservation Internship

Wildlife Conservation Internship: This is an in-country hands-on internship program with provided shared housing and local team support. This internship will involve tasks such as providing medical care to wild animals (birds, foxes, turtles, rabbits etc), cleaning cages, repairing/building cages, feeding animals, participating in actions (freeing animals, awareness events, etc) and maintenance of the facilities.

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Program Reviews

5.00 Rating

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Impact 5
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Fun 5
Value 5
Safety 5

Academics 5
Support 5
Fun 5
Housing 5
Safety 5

Showing 1 - 3 of 3 reviews

Hello, my name is Alyssa and I am from Florida, United States I attend the University of Florida. I chose to do this internship as part of a requirement for my degree at the University, but I chose this internship specifically because I am interested in wildlife conservation.

I was able to see and do many interesting things during my time here. I was able to release three different species of birds successively. I was also able to see the releases of different wildlife species. I was able to see different veterinary procedures and I was also able to see different species of birds I wouldn’t normally see in Florida. I am very happy with the coordination from Cerca Abroad. They are very helpful and through any questions, I had, very quickly.

I really enjoyed staying in Thessaloniki. It’s really a beautiful city and everyone’s been so nice that I’ve met. I would suggest this internship to anyone that is interested in wildlife conservation.

What was the most surprising thing you saw or did?

I had the opportunity to observe various veterinary procedures and encountered different species of birds.

Pros

Interesting experience
Different approaches to wildlife observation and management
The beautiful city of Thessaloniki

Cons

I don't have any negative comments to make

My name is Oren and I am from Australia. I also lived and attended school in Chile and Canada before finishing my high school education in the UK. I have been exposed to different wildlife ecosystems and cultures and I applied for this experience to boost my training and future career. I love animals and the natural environment is where I feel most at home. I selected to join the Marine Conservation program for gaining experience in wildlife and environmental conservation and overall, to develop a life goal of working in worldwide conservation efforts. I worked at the Archipelagos in the island of Samos, Greece on the Marine Mammal Conservation program. Typical tasks included cetacean/ monk seal/ sea turtle presence & behaviour recording, photo identifications and passive acoustic monitoring through boat-based surveys. I also worked on anthropogenic activity assessments from fishing. During this time I improved my social and teamwork skills and learned much about the importance of conservation in wildlife and the environment. My hosts & organisers were amazing and so friendly, making me feel at home. Staying in Greece is such an unforgettable experience. The food is fantastic, people are easy going and I loved spending my free time at the beach.

What was the most unfamiliar thing you ate?

I never tried an octopus and at first I hesitated but its actually very tasty

Pros

Did cetacean/ monk seal/ sea turtle presence & behaviour recording
Went on numerous trips on the research boats
Loads of water sports to do

I am Abbie and I just finished my Bachelors degree in West Texas A&M, entering the vet school in the fall. I joined the internship here at Attica Park Zoo, for just for 4-weeks, one month and I am staying in Athens. I am here for about 2 weeks now, half way through, and I love it and I got to do a lot of different veterinary things. I have seen all kinds of veterinary things on animals, anything from darting animals with vaccines, sedating them and performing surgery and performing autopsies. The apartment that I stay at is really nice, it’s a one bedroom and it has anything you need to be by yourself. I got a lot of support from the zoo and the people from the program. I got to explore Athens and went sightseen from the Acropolis to Mt Parnitha and got to see wildlife in the zoo and in Athens

What is your advice to future travelers on this program?

There is so much to see and do in Athens and the nearby islands and you need to plan ahead on what you want to see and do and according to this you need to arrange your program's duration. Its totally worth it to spend 3-4 weekends in the nearby islands like Mykonos, Santorini, Paros and definitely Milos

Pros

I got to see many exotic animals at the zoo and help the vets in their daily activities
In Athens you can do a different thing every day
The coordinators were very helpful with everything including giving me local tips

Cons

The zoo was a 40' distance from the apartment but it was very easy to go there

Questions & Answers

About Cerca Abroad

Cerca Abroad is a business unit of Cerca Trova Ltd, a European based company (incorporation / VAT number: BG204499976), that specializes in engineering solutions and educational programs. The company started in 2017 by offering medical shadowing internships to hundreds of participants from around the world. Over the past few years it has expanded...