SPD Research Intern

Join Vylor—Powering the Future of Agriculture

At Vylor, we’re advancing agriculture through breakthrough science—combining elite germplasm, cutting-edge biotech, and next-generation expertise in gene editing and molecular breeding. Our portfolio includes trusted industry brands like Pioneer®, Brevant®, and Hoegemeyer®, delivering performance farmers rely on.

Join us to help scale innovation globally and shape what’s next in crop science.

Job Description

Join our team as an Agronomy – Soil, Water & Plant Nutrition Intern in Vylor and participate in an intensive 3-month internship designed to provide hands-on, broad-based exposure to agronomic operations and cutting-edge field research at our research center in Salinas, Puerto Rico. This position offers a specialized focus on plant nutrition, fertility balance, advanced irrigation management, soil physics, and soil conservation practices, while also providing cross-functional rotation across all essential open-field agronomy operations.

Working alongside experienced agronomists and agricultural scientists, the intern will apply technical diagnostic tools—including soil moisture sensors, soil compaction penetrometers, and tissue/soil sampling protocols—to monitor crop health and optimize input efficiency. The intern will support field trial execution, contribute to data-driven fertility programs, and present a final technical summary of their findings to leadership.

Key Responsibilities

• Soil & Water Management: Assist in the deployment, calibration, and monitoring of in-situ soil moisture sensors (FDR/capacitance/TDT), evaluating volumetric water content (VWC) curves, soil drying cycles, and irrigation scheduling to optimize crop water efficiency.

• Soil Compaction & Conservation: Conduct field soil compaction assessments using digital/analog cone penetrometers across different tillage systems; document compaction layers and recommend soil conservation practices (e.g., minimum tillage, cover crops, drainage improvements).

• Soil Fertility & Nutrient Balance: Execute systematic soil sampling protocols across research plots. Assist in tracking soil fertility parameters, soil pH, organic matter, and electrical conductivity (EC), helping calculate nutrient balance according to crop stage-specific nutrient uptake curves.

• Plant Nutrition & Tissue Sampling: Perform foliar and plant tissue sampling throughout critical crop phenological stages. Assist in the preparation, diagnostic analysis, and interpretation of tissue nutrient results to optimize fertigation and nutritional programs.

• Irrigation Systems & Fertigation: Assist in the design, setup, operation, and maintenance of drip irrigation systems, water distribution manifolds, filtration units, and fertigation injection equipment.

• Field Preparation & Planting Operations: Rotate through core agronomic activities, including land assignment, soil tillage, bed formation, drip tape installation, seed planting preparation, and trial stand establishment.

• Integrated Pest Management (IPM) & Scouting: Conduct routine crop scouting for early identification of weeds, insect pests, and disease pressures; support biological and chemical control measures and IPM best management practices.

• Agronomy Field Trials Execution: Support the setup, layout, treatment applications, data collection, and phenotypic evaluations for specific agronomy research and process improvement trials.

• Data Analysis & Reporting: Collect, organize, and analyze agronomic trial data ensuring rigorous data integrity; prepare and deliver a comprehensive final oral presentation and technical poster summarizing key project findings and recommendations to the Salinas leadership team.

• Team Collaboration & Continuous Improvement: Participate actively in weekly team meetings, safety discussions, and operational continuous improvement initiatives across the research station.

Qualifications

• Education Level: Current sophomore, junior, senior, or graduate student pursuing a degree in Agronomy, Soil Science, Crop Science, Agro-Environmental Sciences, Plant Nutrition, Irrigation Engineering, or a closely related agricultural field at an accredited university.

• Enrollment Status: Must be enrolled at an accredited university during the internship period.

• Academic Standing: Minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale preferred.

• Data Accuracy & Technology: Strong attention to detail, rigorous data collection and documentation habits, and proficiency with digital tools (Excel, mobile data entry apps).

• Field Readiness: Willingness and physical ability to work outdoors in varied tropical field conditions (sun, heat, humidity).

• Communication & Teamwork: Excellent interpersonal communication, self-motivation, creative problem-solving ability, and passion for teamwork and sustainable agriculture.

What You Will Gain (Benefits)

• Hands-On Research Experience: Direct, practical experience operating research-grade field instrumentation and managing commercial/seed breeding agronomic trials.

• Deep Technical Mentorship: Work directly with experienced research agronomists, soil specialists, and crop scientists in a dynamic, world-class breeding station.

• Cross-Functional Exposure: Comprehensive rotation through all facets of open-field agriculture—from land tillage and planting to advanced fertigation and harvest.

• Professional Development: Build valuable industry connections, develop data analysis and public presentation skills, and prepare for future career opportunities or graduate studies in agricultural sciences.

Corteva Agriscience™ is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to boldly embracing the power of inclusion, diversity, and equity to enrich the lives of our employees and strengthen the performance of our company, while advancing equity in agriculture. Qualified applicants will be considered without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability or any other protected class. Discrimination, harassment and retaliation are inconsistent with our values and will not be tolerated. If you require a reasonable accommodation to search or apply for a position, please visit:Accessibility Page for Contact Information

For US Applicants: See the ‘Equal Employment Opportunity is the Law’ poster. To all recruitment agencies: Corteva does not accept unsolicited third party resumes and is not responsible for any fees related to unsolicited resumes.