Data science internship fellowship
This data science internship puts you on Earth5R’s live environmental data, with a mentor who checks your work at every step. You clean and analyse real field records on waste, water and air, and turn them into charts and reports that people use.
For school and university students who want real data on their profile, from a first Python notebook to a published analysis. Online, with field work near where you live. The fellowship is paid because every fellow receives time and attention from senior researchers and leaders.
Why data science matters for sustainability
Environmental decisions depend on the data behind them. A city that hasn’t measured its waste can’t plan how to cut it. Companies face the same test when they publish ESG claims. Data scientists turn messy field records into evidence that people can act on.
Earth5R collects photographed, geo-tagged field data on its app in 150+ Indian cities, from waste audits to tree plantations. Its TERRA Score work checks what 1,200+ companies listed in India report against what the ground shows. As a fellow you work on this data, with the same questions Earth5R’s own team asks.
This work links to the UN Sustainable Development Goals: Goal 11, Sustainable cities and communities and Goal 13, Climate action.
Available projects in the data science internship fellowship
You join Earth5R’s live work through your own subject. Your mentor shapes the final project with you.
Waste audit analysis
Clean and analyse waste audit records from lake and river cleanups, find which items and brands appear most, and chart how this changes across sites.
Air and water quality trends
Combine public air and water quality data with Earth5R field records for your city, and test whether pollution peaks follow a pattern.
Company claims against field data
Help compare what companies say in their sustainability reports with field data, using the TERRA Score method, with company names masked.
Dashboard for a local problem
Build a simple dashboard that a housing society or school can use to track waste segregation or water use month by month.
What you do in the field
- Collect your own data in the field with the Earth5R app, so you know where every number comes from
- Clean raw records and document every change you make
- Run descriptive statistics and simple tests in Python or a spreadsheet
- Make charts and maps that a non-specialist can read in a minute
- Write up your method, results and the limits of your data
- Present your findings in a research conversation and answer questions
Skills you build
On a data science internship, you collect your own data near where you live, using the Earth5R app and data forms. Earth5R checks the data on its platform before it goes into your project report.
How the data science internship fellowship works
Every fellow moves through four phases. Each phase is checked by your mentor before you move on.
Observe and Map
Go into the field near where you live and collect primary data for your project in Data Science and Analytics.
Frame and Design
Find the root cause in your data and frame a problem worth solving, with your mentor.
Model
Build a working model, analysis or design for your solution, and test it.
Build and Deploy
Put your solution to work, measure the result and publish a verified record on earth5r.org.
Along the way you take part in research conversations with professors at MIT, Oxford, Cambridge, LSE and other universities, and ask your own questions. See how FIELDWORK works.
Where this can take you
Degrees this work supports
- BSc or BTech in Data Science, Computer Science or Statistics
- MSc in Data Science or Business Analytics
- MSc in Environmental Data Science
- Master’s in Public Policy with a data focus
- PhD in a data-driven environmental field
Careers in this field
- Data analyst or data scientist
- ESG data analyst
- Climate and sustainability analyst
- Research assistant in a university lab
- Product analyst at a technology company
Universities known for Data Science and Analytics
Strong data science programmes look for applicants who have worked with real, messy data and can explain what they found. A fellowship project gives you a dataset you collected, an analysis your mentor reviewed and a public record of the work. Students use a data science internship to build a record of real work for applications to universities like these.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
USA · Institute for Data, Systems, and Society (IDSS)
MIT’s Institute for Data, Systems, and Society (IDSS) works where statistics, data science, decision systems and the social sciences meet. It offers an undergraduate minor in statistics and data science, an Interdisciplinary Doctoral Program in Statistics and an online MicroMasters. Its research domains include energy systems, urban systems and health care.
USA · Program in Data Science
Stanford’s Program in Data Science runs a B.S. in Data Science, a B.A. in Data Science & Social Systems and minors in data science and statistics. Students take mathematics, statistics and computer science courses, along with social science courses on the ethics of data. The major ends in a capstone that links these methods to real problems.
USA · Department of Statistics & Data Science, Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences
At Carnegie Mellon, the Department of Statistics & Data Science offers undergraduate study, professional master’s programmes in applied data science and computational finance, and a Ph.D. Faculty research covers neuroscience, networks, genetics, finance and public policy. Another strand works on theory and methods where statistics meets machine learning.
University of California, Berkeley
USA · College of Computing, Data Science, and Society (CDSS)
Berkeley’s College of Computing, Data Science, and Society connects the departments of Statistics and Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences with Data Science Undergraduate Studies. It also includes the Berkeley Institute for Data Science, D-Lab and the Bakar Institute of Digital Materials for the Planet. Its work studies how data and AI affect health, cities and the climate.
USA · Master’s in Data Science, John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS)
The Master of Science in Data Science at Harvard SEAS is led jointly by the Computer Science and Statistics faculties. The programme trains students in statistical modelling, machine learning, optimisation and the management and analysis of very large data sets. Courses also cover reproducible data analysis, visualisation, and the ethical and security issues that data science raises.
UK · Department of Statistics
Oxford’s Department of Statistics teaches undergraduate degrees in Mathematics and Statistics, the MSc in Statistical Science and a DPhil in Statistics. Its research groups include Computational Statistics and Machine Learning, Statistical Genetics and Epidemiology, and Probability. Doctoral students can also join centres for doctoral training such as STATML and Health Data Science.
UK · Cambridge Centre for Data-Driven Discovery (C2D3)
The Cambridge Centre for Data-Driven Discovery (C2D3) connects researchers from across the university and industry who work on data science, machine learning and AI. It runs talks and keeps a directory of researchers. Its education pages point to courses such as the MPhil in Data Intensive Science and the MPhil in Machine Learning and Machine Intelligence.
UK · Data Science Institute (Data Science Imperial)
At Imperial, the Data Science Institute supports research in data science and AI across the college and runs a data observatory that researchers can book. With the Grantham Institute it set up the Data and AI 4 Climate lab, which brings AI, data and climate experts together. Health projects sit in its Bio-Medical Informatics research theme.
Switzerland · Master in Data Science, Department of Computer Science (D-INFK)
ETH’s Department of Computer Science offers a two-year Master in Data Science, taught in English with the Department of Mathematics and the Department of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering. The programme covers managing and storing very large data sets and building algorithms to analyse them. Students tackle interdisciplinary problems in a Data Science Laboratory course.
National University of Singapore
Singapore · Department of Statistics & Data Science, Faculty of Science
The Department of Statistics & Data Science at NUS offers undergraduate majors in Statistics, Data Science & Applied AI, and Data Science & Economics. Graduate options include an MSc in Statistics, an MSc in Data Science for Sustainability and a PhD in Statistics and Data Science. The department also runs a Data Analytics Consulting Centre.
Canada · Data Sciences Institute (DSI)
The Data Sciences Institute is a multi-divisional hub for data science across Toronto’s three campuses. It funds research through grants such as the Catalyst Grant and offers doctoral and postdoctoral fellowships. Training includes a doctoral data science certificate, microcredentials in data science and machine learning, and the Summer Undergraduate Data Science (SUDS) research opportunity.
This list is for guidance. These universities are widely known for Data Science and Analytics. Earth5R has no admissions arrangement with them, and admission decisions rest with each university. Fellows get help researching universities, scholarships and applications, depending on the programme.
What your fellowship fee pays for
An internship fellowship at Earth5R is time and attention from senior researchers and leaders. Each part below takes staff time and resources that we set aside for every fellow.
Live mentoring with experts
One-to-one mentoring in most fellowships, with regular check-ins on your project.
Dialogues with global researchers
Academics from international universities and renowned scientists, who answer your questions and discuss your work.
Support in the field
Guidance while you collect data and work on your project in the field.
References for your next step
References when you apply for jobs, higher studies and research programmes.
Your work, hosted for life
Your work and data stay on Earth5R’s website and servers for life, where universities and employers can check them.
Time from senior people
Each fellow receives time and attention from senior researchers and leaders, set aside for them.
Fee details available on request.
Choose your fellowship
The fee pays for live mentoring, dialogues with global researchers, support in the field, references and lifelong hosting of your work. Fee details available on request.
Data science internship: common questions
Do I need to know Python for this data science internship?
No. Beginners start with spreadsheets and learn Python step by step with their mentor. Students who already code work on larger datasets and more advanced analysis.
What data will I work with?
Earth5R’s field data on waste, water, trees and air, collected on the Earth5R app, along with public datasets for your city. You also collect some data yourself, so you understand how it was made.
Can a data science internship help with a Master’s application?
It gives you a real project to describe in your statement of purpose and interviews, with a verified record on earth5r.org that admissions teams can check. Admission decisions rest with each university.
Is the data science internship fellowship paid?
Yes. It is a paid, mentored internship fellowship. The fee pays for live mentoring, dialogues with global researchers, support in the field, references and lifelong hosting of your work. Fee details are available on request.
Can I do this data science internship online?
Yes. FIELDWORK runs online, and your field work takes place near where you live. Your mentor guides you through each step.
Who can apply?
School and university students from India and other countries. The fellowship prepares you for university, postgraduate study and work.
What do I get at the end?
A certificate, a letter of recommendation, a project report and a verified profile on earth5r.org, where universities and employers can check your work.
Related internship fellowships
Apply for the data science internship fellowship
Work on a live Earth5R project in Data Science and Analytics with a mentor, take part in research conversations with global researchers, and build a verified record of your work. Fee details available on request.
