Work Experience Program
MARS Wildlife Rescue Centre is an education centre and a wildlife hospital that aims to rescue, rehabilitate, and release sick, injured, and orphaned wildlife on Vancouver Island. Our Mission is to conserve and protect native wildlife and its natural habitat through education and rehabilitation.
Our rural property is in Merville, British Columbia on central Vancouver Island in the beautiful Comox Valley. Our hospital is staffed by a manager, hospital team lead, three wildlife rehabilitators and many dedicated volunteers. As a work experience volunteer, you will become part of a team of like-minded people and will be treated with both respect and friendship. MARS accepts student volunteer position applications all year round.
We are looking to fill spots beginning April 2025 and into the rest of the year. These are unpaid volunteer positions and are usually filled on a one-to-three-month placement basis. We accept stays as little as two weeks and are happy to accommodate longer-term volunteers as well.
Magali Vanderveken
Work Experience Volunteer
“I wanted to help wildlife and do something different. This is a special place and an opportunity for me to make a difference.”
Julia Rugheimer
Work Experience Volunteer
The work program experience at MARS is something I highly recommend. The staff are not only incredibly knowledgeable but also warm, kind, and welcoming. The local volunteers are equally amazing and make the experience even more rewarding. I came with a passion for small mammals, but I left with a newfound love for birds. The location is stunning, and being able to walk to the beach on your days off is such a bonus, especially in the summer. I truly hope to return and volunteer again one day. I can’t recommend this facility enough—you won’t regret it! You’ll leave with invaluable knowledge and friendships that will last a lifetime.
What to expect: As a work experience volunteer, you can expect to be involved in all aspects of the rehabilitation process, although your main responsibilities will be diet preparation, feeding, and cleaning. Volunteers must be willing to work long hours and perform repetitive daily chores and tasks, and constant cleaning of the facility, including laundry, sweeping, and cage cleaning, as our wild animals are constantly creating a mess.
Along with the grunt work, you will also learn how to properly calculate and administer medications to animals, proper rescue and rehab techniques, as well as how to handle all types of wildlife, including songbirds, raptors, seabirds, mammals, and occasionally reptiles. You will be expected to take part in animal and bird rescues and releases, participate in building projects and grounds maintenance, and participate in our community outreach program.
Spring, summer and early autumn are what we call Baby Season. This is when we receive the greatest number of patients during the year. Be forewarned, work at the wildlife hospital can be very demanding! In the summer, our skilled caregivers typically work a variety of shifts between 7 am – 10 pm, with occasional rescues, pickups, and drop offs outside of regular hours. The schedule at MARS can be intense, but you will also be given time off to enjoy the beautiful scenery Vancouver Island has to offer.
MARS Wildlife Rescue offers very basic housing and occasionally some meals, but for the most part you will be responsible for your own food and other amenities.
Previous wildlife experience is not a prerequisite. Come here prepared to give 100% to our wild patients and you will have an extraordinary experience.
Interested applicants should be:
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- self-motivated
- hard-working
- respectful
- cooperative
- independent
- responsible
- willing to work as part of a team
Our website is rich with information about MARS. Check out our Facebook and Instagram to get to know us better. Thank you for your interest and we look forward to hearing from you!
If this interests you
Please fill out the application form below, save it with your name, and attach it to an email, along with your resume and a short letter outlining your reasons for applying.
Email it all to: marsworkexperiencerecruit@gmail.com
We will contact all applicants during the selection process. Thank you for your interest!