Advanced Research Placement
Independent Research + Publication Track
Conduct Real Research. Publish Real Science.
A selective, mentorship-driven placement for students and researchers pursuing serious ecological research in the Amazon.
Overview
The Advanced Research Placement is a high-level program for individuals seeking to conduct independent research in tropical ecology, conservation biology, wildlife monitoring, or related fields.
Participants work directly with a PhD-level quantitative ecologist to develop, refine, analyze, and write up a research project. This may involve designing a project from the ground up, working with existing Hoja Nueva datasets, contributing to ongoing research, or developing thesis-level or publication-oriented work.
This is not a general internship. It is a research collaboration designed for participants who want to engage deeply with the scientific process and produce meaningful academic or professional outcomes.
What You'll Do
Each placement is tailored to the participant’s background, goals, and project needs. Some participants arrive with a defined thesis or research question, while others need support developing a project from the beginning. Depending on your level, mentorship may begin with the foundations of scientific thinking and project formulation, or it may focus more heavily on advanced modeling, analysis, interpretation, and manuscript preparation.
Participants may work on formulating research questions, designing methodologies, structuring a scientific study, cleaning and organizing ecological datasets, conducting statistical analyses, applying quantitative tools, interpreting results, and drafting a thesis, report, or manuscript.
Research may involve camera trap data, wildlife monitoring, species occurrence, behavior, biodiversity patterns, conservation questions, or other ecological topics aligned with Hoja Nueva’s mission and available datasets.
Mentorship
This placement includes weekly one-on-one mentorship, ongoing feedback, and support tailored to your academic level. The mentorship may cover research design, statistical modeling, coding, data visualization, writing, interpretation, and publication strategy.
Because this level of support is intensive, spaces are limited. The program also includes limited post-placement support to help participants continue progressing toward project completion, thesis submission, or publication after leaving the field site.
A Typical Day
The Advanced Research Placement is more intellectual and independent than the Immersive Conservation Internship. A typical day may involve data analysis, coding, literature review, scientific writing, meetings, project discussions, or independent work.
Participants may also join fieldwork, camera trap hikes, wildlife surveys, rehabilitation activities, or jungle walks when appropriate, but these are secondary to the research goals of the placement. Much of the work may be computer-based, especially for participants working with existing datasets or preparing manuscripts.
Starlink internet is available on site most of the day, but participants should be prepared for remote conditions and occasional connectivity limitations.
Life at Hoja Nueva
Advanced Research participants live on-site at the same rainforest field station as other interns and course participants. Accommodation is shared and simple, with beds, mosquito nets, communal spaces, solar-powered electricity, composting toilets, showers, hand-wash laundry, and Starlink Wi-Fi available during parts of the day.
Nutritious meals are provided, and participants live within a remote rainforest environment several hours from the nearest city. The setting is beautiful, biodiverse, and deeply immersive, but it also requires adaptability, patience, and comfort with basic field conditions.
Who This Is For
This program is designed for Master’s students, PhD students, advanced undergraduates completing thesis-level work, as well as early-career researchers seeking a serious research experience. It may also be appropriate for highly motivated individuals preparing for graduate school or publication-oriented work.
Participants should be independent, motivated, comfortable receiving feedback, and prepared to spend significant time thinking, analyzing, writing, and revising.
Outcomes
The goal of this placement is to produce a completed research project, thesis chapter, manuscript draft, or publication-oriented output. While publication can never be absolutely guaranteed, the placement is designed to give participants a strong pathway toward publishable work when time, project quality, and commitment align.
Participants leave with advanced research experience, stronger analytical skills, scientific writing support, and high-level mentorship in tropical ecology and conservation science.
Duration and Pricing
The Advanced Research Placement has a recommended minimum stay of two months because meaningful research takes time. One-month placements may be considered only in exceptional cases, particularly for participants with a clearly defined project or existing dataset.
Pricing is tiered to encourage longer stays, as longer placements allow for stronger mentorship, deeper analysis, better project development, and greater potential for publication.
Sample Program Fees:
One Month
$1,900
Two Months
$3,500
Three Months
$4,950
Four Months
$6,200
Five Months
$7,250
Six Months
$8,100
What's Included
Your placement fee includes weekly one-on-one mentorship with a PhD-level ecologist, support with project design, analysis, interpretation, and writing, access to datasets and research infrastructure, optional participation in fieldwork or rehabilitation activities, accommodation, meals, transport to/from Puerto Maldonado, and on-site living.
This is a premium-tier placement reflecting the individualized mentorship and academic support involved. A deposit is required to secure your placement, with the remaining balance due prior to arrival.
Ready to Join us?
The Advanced Research Placement is an opportunity to conduct meaningful scientific work in one of the most biodiverse ecosystems on Earth, with direct mentorship and support throughout the research process.
If you’re ready to develop a project, deepen your analytical skills, and contribute to real conservation science, we’d love to hear from you.