NCAS-M II will prepare students for success in their career paths through:
- NOAA experiential learning and collaborative research throughout the academic year
- Advanced NOAA mission-aligned research and training programs that will address skill development and core competency attainment
Additionally, throughout the year, there will be webinars to ensure that NCAS-M II cohort students are trained and will graduate with interdisciplinary knowledge and competencies, especially for meteorology and atmospheric science, and professional skill development to develop competencies required to work at NOAA.
NOAA Experiential Research and Training Opportunity (NERTO)
The NOAA Experiential Research and Training Opportunity (NERTO) is a NCAS-M II graduate student requirement during the fellowship. This NOAA mission aligned experience integrates academics with practical NOAA mission-relevant experiential training. The NERTO experience must be completed by NCAS-M II graduate fellows at a NOAA facility under the guidance of a full-time NOAA employee and must be a minimum of twelve weeks. At the end of NERTO, the student is required to present the results of their NERTO at the One NOAA Science Seminar.
NOAA Experiential Training Summer Internship (NETSI)
The NOAA Experiential Training Summer Internship (NETSI) is a NCAS-M II undergraduate student internship that is strongly encouraged. The 10-week intensive summer internship takes place at a NOAA facility, under the direction of a NOAA mentor. At the end of NETSI, the student is expected to present the results of their internship research at the NOAA Office of Education Undergraduate Research Symposium.
NOAA Skills and Competencies Training at NCAS-M II
NCAS-M II will conduct skills and competencies workshops in NOAA science priorities, as core competencies, with the support of NOAA subject matter expert personnel in four key areas:
- interdisciplinary fields for policy applications of natural resources, science, and technology concepts
- environmental policy to understand links to human dimensions at the ecosystem level of their academic discipline(s) and/or research
- statistical methods that are used in social sciences (design, methods. analyses, and interpretation) to gain understanding of the development of social science research question(s) and the application of the relevant social science methodology
- linking science and management to decision making policy and how these are used in addressing impacts of global environmental changes and environmental justice
Annual NCAS-M II Center-Wide Cohort Experience
During the summer of each year, all NCAS-M II fellows will come together for the NCAS-M II Center-wide Cohort Experience at one of the NCAS-M II partner institutions. The CCE will consist of two days of professional/career and skill development training along with team building. The workshop will provide students with a dynamic learning experience designed to enhance their professional/career skills and core competency attainment.
