About the role
The USF St. Petersburg campus has implemented a range of sustainability-focused projects funded by student initiatives over the past several years. Developing an archive that brings together (1) relevant datasets and (2) Associated archives and documentation is essential for assessing the outcomes of these initiatives. However, much of this data is not readily available despite a strong desire to make it openly accessible for integration into USF curricular and research activities across a range of disciplines.
Undergraduate students expressing interest in (1) Digital collections and archiving, or (2) Data collection, will engage in an experiential learning internship designed to develop digital collections relevant to USF St. Petersburg’s distinctive campus priorities.
Interns will develop skills and understanding necessary to successfully identify, compile, organize, and describe datasets and/or digital collections. Interns may choose to focus on developing digital collections comprised of (1) Student and other university publications, and (2) USF St. Petersburg digital archives such as student newspaper articles, or they may choose to focus on (3) Creation of baseline datasets relevant to local St. Petersburg campus initiatives (e.g., composting initiative, Rec Center bike datasets, SGEF archives, etc.).
Upon completion of the fieldwork, the student will be able to:
- Differentiate between archival and non-archival information and datasets for long-term preservation
- Apply best practices for the organization and description of datasets and archives related to sustainability
- Create finding aids, exhibits, or other descriptive metadata for access and discoverability of datasets for the use of the university community
Preferences:
Some knowledge of USF St. Petersburg campus sustainability initiatives and/or engagement with student organizations is helpful.
Familiarity with Excel spreadsheets is preferred.
The University of South Florida is a top-ranked research university serving approximately 50,000 students from across the globe at campuses in Tampa, St. Petersburg and USF Health. In 2025, U.S. News & World Report recognized USF with its highest overall ranking in university history, as a top 50 public university for the seventh consecutive year and as one of the top 15 best values among all public universities in the nation. U.S. News also ranks the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine in the highest tier, placing it as one of the top 16 medical schools in the nation and inside the top 10 among public universities. USF is a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU), a group that includes only the top 3% of universities in the U.S. With an all-time high of $750 million in research funding in 2025 and as a top 20 public university for producing U.S. patents, USF uses innovation to transform lives and shape a better future. The university generates an annual economic impact of nearly $10 billion for the state of Florida. USF’s Division I athletics teams compete in the American Conference. Learn more at www.usf.edu