Overview

Contribute to big cat conservation and other valuable wildlife research in South Africa AND get career training from Conservation Careers!

Explore the wild side of South Africa when you join a global team of participants to take part in big cat research. You’ll develop an understanding of these animals and improve your wildlife research skills while contributing to data collection to ensure their long-term survival. Your efforts will make a substantial contribution to United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 15: Life on Land.

Photo of a cheetah walking by a wateringhole with it's reflection in the water.

Work alongside our international research team collecting spatial utilisation, inter-species interactions, and prey preference data on big cats, including lions, cheetah and leopards, in partnership with international conservation organisations such as EarthRanger.

Learn how to track lions across the savannah: recording their location, number of individuals, sex, and behaviour with others of their species, other predators, as well as prey species. You might also have the chance to work on the identification of the local leopards and their spatial utilisation. The information gathered is used by reserve management to track the impact and preferences of predators on prey populations and help them make decisions about maintaining the health of the ecosystem within the protected area.

Please note the hours in the field may be long, which can be tiring in the heat of the African sun.

As part of this program, you’ll get involved in community development initiatives. Through partnerships with local schools and education centres, volunteers play a role in education-focused projects. These projects aim to boost community involvement and strengthen the connections between people and wildlife.

Photo of two cheetahs

Highlights

  • Support big cat conservation. Make a lasting contribution to the preservation of African big cats and experience them up close in their natural habitat.
  • Hear the call of the wild. Get the full safari experience with this once-in-a lifetime chance to work with and live among some of the world’s vulnerable species.
  • Be part of the real deal. Contribute to ongoing environmental projects that address critical challenges aligned to the global UN SDGs.
  • Join ethical initiatives. Join local conservation partners and qualified professionals to ensure your efforts are highly ethical, meaningful and sustainable.
  • Experience unreal adventures. Venture outside typical travel itineraries to get exclusive access to extraordinary remote habitats, rare species and unique ecosystems.
  • Make friends for life. Share epic experiences with like-minded, passionate changemakers from all over the globe.
  • Enjoy a hassle-free, safe trip. With expert local staff and 24/7 support at every step – you can relax and enjoy the experience stress-free.
  • Take a break. Disconnect from the digital world and reconnect with nature, yourself and your purpose.

Photo of a hyena

Our Award-winning Partner

Conservation Careers has teamed up with an award-winning, mission-driven organisation with a team of passionate experts across the globe who will make your experience a truly unforgettable one.

Founded in 1998, they run programs in 21 locations, in 13 countries around the world, each aligned to the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals as well as the objectives of local partners. They welcome participants from all around the world and help facilitate their development into global citizens. This is how they achieve their mission of building a global network of people united by their passion to make a difference.

Their commitment to running high-quality sustainable development and experiential education programs has earned them recognition from numerous organizations such as Panthera, the Seychelles Parks & Gardens Authority, as well as Stanford, NYU, Duke, and Ohio State.

If you register your interest below, you’ll put you in touch with our partner to take the booking and to plan your trip!

Explore all our Conservation Careers Internship opportunities.

Photo of a person in a jeep taking a photo of a sunset over a watering hole.

Life on base

Live in the heart of the South African savannah, sharing a renovated farmhouse with qualified guides from the Field Guides Association of Southern Africa, other staff, and participants from around the world. The base is incredibly remote, and tourists are unable to visit. Completely open to the bush and close to a dam, animals frequently visit the property, including elephants, buffalo, impala and leopards.

Boasting more than 20 thousand acres of open savannah, our research station in Limpopo features some of the best wildlife viewing of any private South African game reserve. It’s home to all of the Big Five, including the elusive leopard, as well as cheetahs and spotted hyenas.

Rise each morning to the sound of African birdsong at dawn, before heading out in an open-topped safari vehicle to conduct research vital for the conservation of key predator species, like cheetahs and lions. Heading back to camp when the sun is at its height, you’ll input data, study, assist with cooking or tidying, or relax with the team in our shared outdoor social space. In the early afternoon, when the sun starts to set over the Drakensberg mountain range, you’ll head out again to conduct further research. Returning when the stars are at their brightest, you’ll share a meal and the day’s stories with your team. In your free time, visit Kruger National Park, an hour’s drive from your accommodation, travel to the scenic Panorama Route, which takes you through the magnificent Blyde River Canyon, or spend some time in the local town called Hoedspruit.

With one of most biodiverse ecosystems in the world, and home to many of the most threatened African wildlife species, South Africa is a nature, wildlife, and adventure lover’s paradise.

Photo of a group and a teacher studying animal tracks in the sand by a road.

Activities

Some of the example typical activities you could participate in on this program.

  • Fieldwork training. Learn how to identify species, collect data and monitor animals. Get trained in health, safety, and ethical considerations for conservation work.
  • Species identification. Gain experience identifying and monitoring your chosen focus species.
  • Big cat monitoring. Use VHF telemetry to monitor cheetah behaviour: kill preferences, spatial utilisation, interactions and competition, and feeding ecology.
  • Reserve maintenance. Help rehabilitate land degradation and erosion, remove alien species and assist with other reserve maintenance projects.
  • Large herbivore monitoring. Collect data on megaherbivores like rhino, elephant and buffalo. Data will include population dynamics, spatial utilisation, and group associations.
  • Community engagement. Get involved in environmental education awareness projects, teach English, or contribute to projects proposed by our local partner organisations.
  • Citizen science. Collect data on local bird species and upload it to citizen science databases. This data is used by researchers all over the world.

Photo of a person sitting on a rock looking out over a mountain range.

Skills

  • Data collection
  • Data entry
  • Population ecology
  • Species identification
  • Survey research
  • VHF telemetry
  • Wildlife conservation
  •  Volunteering
  • Cultural awareness
  • Interpersonal skills
  •  Communication
  •  Teamwork
  • Easily adaptable

Photo of a leopard sleeping draped over a fallen tree trunk. Photo by https://bigcatfacts.net/leopard/

BONUS! Conservation Career Kick-Starter online training programme (worth $495 / £375 / €450)

Do you want to spend your career helping wildlife to flourish, but are feeling a little lost, confused or disillusioned?

Start your career in wildlife conservation with a unique programme of training, support community & jobs from Conservation Careers!

The Conservation Career Kick-Starter is a proven step-by-step system to get you hired quicker as a professional conservationist.

The Kick-Starter is trusted by over 2,500 people, and 40 universities, with 99% ratings. Whether you’re at university and planning your next steps, a graduate in the job hunt or working in an unrelated job but interested to switch into conservation, this course is designed to help you.

After going through the course, you’ll have created a personal career plan which will give you confidence in your job hunt and will make everything quicker, simpler and more fun!

All you need to do is register your interest in the project below, and if you choose to make a booking we’ll save a place for you on the Kick-Starter when you get back from your placement.

Included with the Kick-Starter is a year’s full-access to the world’s biggest conservation job board with over 15,000 jobs, plus access to our private online support community, CC Pro.

Photo of a lioness and three cubs.

Duration, Dates & Costs

Register your interest below to learn about upcoming start dates, durations and costs.

What’s Included

General

  • Food
  • Safe and basic accommodation (usually shared)
  • Airport pick up (unless stated)
  • All project equipment
  • 24-hour in-country support from local staff
  • 24-hour emergency desk
  • Experiences

Activities

  • Sustainable project work
  • Data collection and research

Pre-program training

  • Pre-departure webinar
  • Pre-departure training (online)
  • University of Richmond endorsed specialisation course

Welcome training

  • Welcome presentation
  • Health & safety
  • Local culture & environment
  • UN SDGs
  • Impact & ethics
  • Child protection

Photo of two people in a jeep looking through binoculars at animals in the South African bush.

What’s excluded

  • Flights
  • International and domestic airport taxes
  • Medical and travel insurance
  • Visa costs
  • Police or background check
  • Personal items and toiletries
  • Additional drinks and gratuities

Reserve your place or ask a question