P-491 - Cultivating Talent through SCARLET: An undergraduate internship program

The USDA-NIFA REEU program has facilitated the creation of the SCARLET (Student Careers In Agricultural, Research, Learning, & Extension Training) program to facilitate hands-on training and mentorship of undergraduate students.  The objective of this work was to better prepare undergraduate students with exposure to career options, skills & knowledge to pursue graduate studies or careers in agricultural sciences.  This program was developed as an 8 week intensive destination internship with 1-to-1 mentoring, education & training from various scientists employed by Texas A&M University AgriLife Extension, the USDA-ARS, USDA-TARS in Puerto Rico, Univ. Puerto Rico, and Texas Tech University.  As of 2024, 30 interns have participated in the program, with 29 completing the program. Students were surveyed to obtain feedback regarding their experiences and the impacts of the program. Student interns indicated that the program was informative and significantly impacted their awareness of agricultural science careers, overall knowledge and confidence, and career considerations.