Join one of the fastest growing, future-thinking, creatively inclined professional teams in the country. We are committed to offering you the opportunity to exchange ideas, share experiences, and achieve personal fulfillment, all while bolstering your professional portfolio.
Our interns are fully integrated into our full-time staff. While responsibilities vary by position and year, all individuals are valued, treated as professional staff, and will develop an in-depth perspective of our organization and operations.
Help us leave a legacy not only here in Madison, but in the field of campus recreation and wellbeing.
We’re building a movement, and we want you to join us.
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Explore our current openings on the UW Jobs Board. Apply to join our team and our movement.
Summer Internships
To ensure consideration, applications must be received by March 1, 2025.
Candidates must apply to each position they are interested in and are welcome to apply to multiple positions. Application links for each position will be listed below.
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Internship Details
- The summer internship is a limited-term position lasting 400 hours.
- Employment is expected to run approximately June – August 2025. Dates will vary based on position.
- Compensation is $22 per hour, based on an average of 40 hours per week.
- This position will receive up to 10 days of unpaid vacation.
- This position may require occasional evening and weekend hours.
- Housing, benefits, and health insurance not included.
Member Services
The Member Services Professional Intern is responsible for assisting the Member Services department with day-to-day operations of the Rec Well facilities. This individual will gain valuable recreation and leadership experience by having active involvement in enhancing the member experience, recruitment and retention initiatives, rental equipment and merchandise management, campus recreation software, scheduling, budgeting, and data analysis. The Member Services Professional Intern will serve on the team responsible for assisting with the onboarding and training of 60-100 student employees.
What you can expect to do:
- Assist in the management of all aspects of Member Services, including staffing, sales & refunds, locker rentals, tours, and membership sales, as well as customer inquiries and concerns.
- Assist with the overall management of comprehensive campus recreation software, Fusion.
- Participate in member recruitment fairs, presentations, and initiatives.
- Assist with establishing and implementing short- and long-term goals, strategic initiatives, policies, operating procedures, and assessments related to member services.
- Assist in planning and support of Divisional events such as SOAR (new student orientation)
Operations
The Operations Professional Intern is responsible for the oversight and safety of Rec Well facilities. This individual will gain valuable recreation and leadership experience by having active involvement in student staff development, member experience, operational and facility management, campus recreation software, scheduling, budgeting, and risk management, all while serving as an ambassador for Rec Well to the UW-Madison campus and community. The Operations Professional Intern will serve on the team responsible for the hiring, training, and development of approximately 60 student employees.
What you can expect to do:
- Provide leadership and manage the day-to-day operations of Rec Well facilities including the Nicholas Recreation Center and Bakke Recreation & Wellbeing Center.
- Directly assist in the recruitment, hiring, training, supervision, scheduling, payroll, and evaluation of approximately 60 student employees with a focus on student training, development, and learning alongside the other Professional Intern.
- Create, implement, and facilitate student employee trainings that may occur outside business hours or on weekends.
- Work with Facility Services team for the upkeep, cleanliness, and maintenance of all activity spaces and equipment, including routine facility audits.
- Create and maintain student staff job duties through Connect2Concepts, facility management software.
- Implement and provide feedback on Rec Well policies and guidelines.
- Follow up on incidents and accidents that occur in all facilities.
- Collaborate to ensure consistency of processes and policies across all facilities and develop, review, and evaluate student employee resources.
- Aid in the creation and tracking of the annual budget, specifically related to recreation and first aid supplies as well as student wages.
- Assist in maintaining building security and safety through electronic access controls, key management, building surveillance, and two-way radio system.
Summer Camp
The Summer Camp Professional Intern will assist in projects to support the Rec Well Club & Community Programs Department with the main focus with the Summer Camp program. Specific projects will be determined in conjunction with the successful candidate but may include developing summer camp programming, supervising camp staff, camp coverage, and/or student staff training and development.
What you can expect to do:
- Coordinate communication efforts through weekly newsletters, signage, updates, etc.
- Provides high quality customer service for summer camp participants.
- May assist in program planning and field trip logistics.
- Support daily camp operations in a camp coverage role.
- May facilitate weekly staff in-services for Rec Well Summer Camp staff.
- May assist in risk management for Rec Well Summer Camp to include skill audits, risk assessment, and policy compliance.
- Maintain program and facility schedules for internal and external stakeholders.
Academic Year Internships
To ensure consideration, applications must be received by March 1, 2025.
Candidates must apply to each position they are interested in and are welcome to apply to multiple positions. Application links for each position will be listed below.
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Internship Details
Internship details:
- The academic-year internship is a limited-term position lasting 9 months or 1,040 hours.
- Employment is expected to run August 11, 2025 – May 15, 2026. Dates may be flexible and may vary based on position.
- Compensation is $22 per hour, based on an average of 30 hours per week.
- Interns will be allotted approximately four weeks unpaid leave:
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- Recommended break times
- Thanksgiving Break (1 week)
- Winter Break (2 weeks)
- Spring Break (1 week)
- Recommended break times
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- This position may require occasional evening and weekend hours.
- Housing, transportation, and other benefits are not included.
- Opportunities for professional development funding support may be available.
Aquatics
The Aquatics Professional Intern will be responsible for the hiring, training, scheduling, and evaluation of aquatic student-staff and promoting participant safety and satisfaction.
What you can expect to do:
- Develop and implement lifeguard in-service and training sessions and assist with maintaining lifeguard certifications.
- Assist with hiring, training, scheduling, and evaluating aquatic student-staff.
- Lead lifeguarding in-services and trainings using American Red Cross skills and evaluate lifeguarding staff to standards of their certifications.
- Perform regular facility and equipment inspections.
- Enforce Rec Well policies and procedures to promote participant safety and satisfaction.
- Assist in the scheduling of all aquatic facilities, including internal programming and rentals.
- Support aquatic rentals and Rec Well events with planning, setup, and tear down.
Club & Community Programs
The Club & Community Programs Professional Intern will assist in leading a sport club program with 50+ unique clubs and community programs including swim lessons, ice skating lesson, American Red Cross classes, and youth programs. They will directly supervise student leads and assigned sport clubs and assist in the hiring and training of over 75 student instructors and supervisors.
This position will work closely with one designated department within Rec Well, either Sport Clubs or Community Programs, to support and enhance their operations. The specific department assignment will be determined based on the candidate’s skills and organizational needs.
What you can expect to do:
- Assist with the supervision, management, and mentorship of 10 student lead supervisors.
- Recruit, train, supervise, and evaluate 50+ student supervisors and 30+ instructors.
- Assist with the overall management of comprehensive campus recreation softwares; InnoSoft Fusion, DoSports Easy.
- Serve as a liaison to select sport clubs, including all aspects of club oversight such as risk management, inventory, waiver collection, website update, monthly officer meetings, and priority points tracking system.
- Maintain daily office hours to assist with administrative duties including answering phone calls and e-mail correspondence, stocking first aid kits with proper supplies, record retention and filing, and customer service.
- Manage program registration for non-credit educational programs including adult and youth lessons, American Red Cross programs, and Rec Well summer camp and sport clubs.
- Maintain a presence at Club & Community Program events competitions.
- Create and enforce policies to mitigate risk in Club & Community Program offerings.
Fitness
The Fitness Professional Intern will gain valuable fitness programming experience by having an active and engaged role within a robust campus recreation fitness program. This internship has been designed to give professionals an opportunity to grow in training and student development, administrative experience, and supporting fitness participants wellbeing through movement. The intern will gain valuable experience in all areas of the fitness department but will primarily focus their efforts supporting the Personal Training and Strength and Conditioning Programs.
What you can expect to do:
- Assist with recruitment, training, and mentorship of personal training staff.
- Help plan and deliver training during in-services and mentorship workshops.
- Assist in the management of trainer-client matching process.
- Oversee the personal training Fitness Equipment Orientations.
- Work with sport club athletes to program team-based strength and conditioning programs.
Intramural Sports
The Intramural Sports Professional Intern will gain valuable campus recreation and leadership experience by having active involvement in the overall program development, programming, and evaluation of personnel. This individual will gain leadership experience in Intramural Sports, marketing, financial management, facility operations, and personnel management, all while serving as an ambassador for Rec Well to the UW-Madison campus and community.
What you can expect to do:
- Assist with the supervision, management, and mentorship of 40 student supervisors.
- Manage and execute programming responsibilities for select Intramural Sports leagues and special events, including revision of rules, marketing, registration, communications, reschedules and playoff format, inventory control, assessment & evaluation.
- Recruit, train, supervise, and evaluate Sports supervisors and Intramural Sports officials and scorekeepers.
- Maintain daily office hours to assist with administrative duties including answering phone calls and e-mail correspondence, stocking first aid kits with proper supplies, record retention and filing, and customer service.
- Maintain a presence at Intramural Sports events.
Member Services
The Member Services Professional Interns will help to oversee the day-to-day member services operations of either the Nicholas Recreation Center or Bakke Recreation & Wellbeing Center. These professional interns will assist in the hiring, training, and development of approximately 70 student employees per facility. They will also actively manage the comprehensive campus recreation software, Fusion.
What you can expect to do:
- Assist in the management of all aspects of Member Services, including staffing/payroll, locker rentals, tours, and membership sales.
- Oversight of Member Service forms and recurring membership cancellations, which includes all member inquiries and concerns.
- Assist with the overall management of comprehensive campus recreation software, Fusion.
- Participate in member recruitment fairs, presentations, and initiatives.
- Assist with establishing and implementing short- and long-term goals, strategic initiatives, policies, operating procedures, and assessments related to member services.
- Assist in planning and support of Divisional and/or committee events such as Wisconsin Welcome Week activities, student employment events, and NIRSA events which may include some evening and weekend hours.
Nutrition Education
The Nutrition Education Professional Intern will assist in the multi-faceted operational and administrative needs of the Nutrition Education department of Rec Well, which includes a variety of cooking classes and food events for UW-Madison students, Wolf Teaching Kitchen room requests, and internal and external collaboration efforts. This position works directly with professional and student staff in completing administrative tasks, coordinating outreach efforts, assisting with hiring processes, and supporting Nutrition Education events and programs.
What you can expect to do:
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- Complete administrative tasks for Wolf Teaching Kitchen rental requests. This includes tracking information, communicating with internal staff and external groups, and following room rental timeline and room use policies.
- Support Nutrition Education food programs through program planning, inventory management, using internal communication platforms, outreach events, and executing weekly and daily administrative and hands-on processes.
- Assist in leading and managing up to 12 Nutrition Education student staff through training, providing individualized support, creating work schedules, delegating tasks, providing feedback, and leading student meetings.
- Contribute to making data informed decisions of Nutrition Education programs through internal and external surveys and program analysis.
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- Maintain a presence at Nutrition Education programs, as needed.
- Perform regular inspections of kitchen equipment and risk management supplies.
- Participate in divisional and university collaborations as a representative of the Nutrition Education department.
Operations
The Operations Professional Interns will be responsible for the oversight and safety of Rec Well facilities. These individuals will gain valuable recreation and leadership experience by having active involvement in student staff development, member experience, operational and facility management, campus recreation software, scheduling, budgeting, and risk management, all while serving as an ambassador for Rec Well to the UW-Madison campus and community. The Operations Professional Interns will serve on the team responsible for the hiring, training, and development of approximately 180 student employees.
What you can expect to do:
- Provide leadership and manage the day-to-day operations of Rec Well facilities including the Nicholas Recreation Center and Bakke Recreation & Wellbeing Center.
- Directly assist in the recruitment, hiring, training, supervision, scheduling, payroll, and evaluation of approximately 180 student employees with a focus on student training, development, and learning alongside the other Professional Intern.
- Create, implement, and facilitate student employee trainings that may occur outside business hours or on weekends.
- Work with Facility Services team for the upkeep, cleanliness, and maintenance of all activity spaces and equipment, including routine facility audits.
- Create and maintain student staff job duties through Connect2Concepts, facility management software.
- Implement and provide feedback on Rec Well policies and guidelines.
- Follow up on incidents and accidents that occur in all facilities.
- Collaborate to ensure consistency of processes and policies across all facilities and develop, review, and evaluate student employee resources.
- Aid in the creation and tracking of the annual budget, specifically related to recreation and first aid supplies as well as student wages.
- Assist in maintaining building security and safety through electronic access controls, key management, building surveillance, and two-way radio system.
- Represent Rec Well at institutional workshops, informational meetings, training sessions, committees, and conferences.
Wellbeing
The Wellbeing Professional Intern will assist in the multi-faceted operational and administrative needs of the Wellbeing department which includes programs such as wellness coaching, wellness peer education, massage therapy, and mindful meditation. This position works directly with professional and student staff by completing tasks, coordinating outreach and events, assisting with the hiring processes, and developing and facilitating wellbeing opportunities across campus for students.
What you can expect to do:
- Complete administrative and communication tasks for wellbeing programs such as peer wellness coaching, peer wellness education, massage, and mindful meditation. This includes customer service, program registration, leading student meetings, assessing and organizing requests, and tracking survey data.
- Work with each unique program area to increase awareness through communication strategies across campus.
- Take a critical look at the current wellbeing programming and recommend strategies to improve operational processes; take the lead on creating appropriate deliverables with support.
- Assist in training and evaluating wellbeing student employees and participate in the hiring process of new wellbeing student staff; may include the opportunity to directly supervise 10-20 student staff.
- Support the development and facilitation of wellbeing workshops to student groups and classes.
- Participate and engage fully in professional development and leadership opportunities including the professional intern curriculum and managing professional development funds for applicable events and trainings.
Why Our Internship is Right For You
Our human capital values of communicating effectively, collaborative and innovative idea generation, recognition of achievements, and commitment to cultivating a healthy environment, are what motivate us to provide you an exceptional experience.
During this internship experience, you will be provided the resources, support, and opportunities to:
- Write your story as a professional for whichever career path is best for you.
- Weave relationships with forward-thinking and motivated students and professionals.
- Welcome personal growth and self-exploration for yourself.
- Widen your abilities as a leader, innovator, and decision-maker.
- Wow your future employer.
Learn more
For more information about our
professional internship program, contact:
Alec Triggiano
Assistant Director of Staff Training & Development
alec.triggiano@wisc.edu
(608) 890 – 3906
