Geology Major Maya Hofstetter '25 Digs Deep as Invertebrate Paleontology Intern
Name: Maya Hofstetter
Class Year: 2025
Major: Geology
Minor: Museum Studies
Hometown: Takoma Park, Md.
Internship Organization: The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University
Internship Title: Invertebrate Paleontology Intern
Location: Philadelphia, Pa.
What's happening at your internship? We would love to hear what kind of work you are doing!
I am working on two projects as an intern in the Invertebrate Paleontology collection: taking stock of the Academy’s paleobotany (plant fossil) collection and processing microfossil data for the Expanding Ocean Drilling Pursuits (eODP) project. The Academy's paleobotany collection consists of approximately 4,000 fossil plants representing over 500 million years of the Earth’s history. Fossil plants are important tools for understanding the effect of past climatic events on ecosystems and predicting the impact of climate change on today’s environment.
My work this summer will enable Dr. Jocelyn Sessa and Dr. Chelsea Smith to apply for a National Science Foundation grant to rehouse fossils in new cabinets, photograph and create 3D images of specimens, and upload data to publicly accessible platforms like Integrated Digital Biocollections. The eODP project is an extension of the International Ocean Discovery Program, an exploratory deep-sea drilling project. Microfossils – tiny, preserved marine organisms like foraminifera and dinoflagellates – found within the deep-sea cores store information about ocean conditions like the level of oxygen in their shells, making them a valuable resource for paleontologists and climate researchers alike. The eODP project cleans, compiles, and standardizes existing drilling records to import them into searchable, open-access databases like Macrostrat and the Paleobiology Database.
Maya Hofstetter '25Microfossils found within the deep-sea cores store information about ocean conditions like the level of oxygen in their shells, making them a valuable resource for paleontologists and climate researchers alike.
Why did you apply for this internship?
I spent the past semester interning at the Academy through the Museum Studies department's fieldwork seminar and Praxis Program. I spent my Wednesdays working alongside Invertebrate Paleontology staff to inventory and rehouse a collection of approximately 770 well cores from the Mid-Atlantic region. This project has since wrapped up, and we recently handed off the collection's New Jersey samples to the state's Department of Environmental Protection and the Rutger's University Core Repository. I enjoyed my time working with the Invert Paleo team, so when I had the opportunity to stay for the summer, I took it!
Can you talk about the skills you are learning and why they are important to you?
My work this summer has improved my skills in fossil identification and foraminifera taxonomy. Proper identification of palaeobotanical specimens allows our team to get a better idea of the diversity of specimens in our collection, and my work with foraminifera has given me insight into how scientists propose new species and revise their taxonomic relationships to one another.
What is most rewarding about your internship?
I find a lot of my work to be incredibly satisfying – uploading records, assigning barcodes to specimens, or finishing working through a cabinet of fossils – but my favorite aspect of my time at the Academy has been getting to know my colleagues. It's been valuable to spend time and learn from others who are navigating the landscape of academia, museums, and paleontology. Working alongside a group of friendly, welcoming people who share my interests has been a lovely experience.
Through the Career and Civic Engagement Center Beyond ÷ÈÓ°Ö±²¥ Summer Internship Program, ÷ÈÓ°Ö±²¥ students pursue opportunities in fields such as nonprofits, government and law, health care, research, sciences, business, and the arts. Thanks to the generosity of our alumnae/i and donors, over 150 students across all academic departments are funded to pursue unpaid internships or research experiences in the U.S. and abroad each year.