For many students, finding a career path is a process of looking outward. But for recent University of Montana graduate Abby Sherwood, the inspiration behind her career began with a vivid childhood memory from her own backyard in Frenchtown, Montana: watching the 12,000-acre Black Cat Fire sweep across the landscape, nearly consuming her neighbors’ homes.
As a competitive high school and collegiate cross country and track athlete, Abby frequently found her early-fall running practices forced indoors by heavy, localized wildfire smoke.
Those formative experiences sparked a lifelong question: How do we protect our communities and manage these changing landscapes?
Abby graduated cum laude from UM in May 2024 with a B.S. in Environmental Science and Sustainability and a minor in Spanish. By treating Griz Country as an operational testing ground—stacking federal policy internships, intensive laboratory research, and non-governmental organization (NGO) fellowships—she answered that question, transforming childhood curiosity into a trajectory toward environmental law.
The Strategy: Stacking Policy, Lab Science, and NGO Networks
An elite resume isn’t built by staying inside a single department. To truly understand land management, Abby knew she needed to master three distinct arenas: the federal government, the scientific laboratory, and the nonprofit conservation sector.
Over her four years at UM, she intentionally secured three high-impact experiential learning milestones:
- Federal Policy in the Nation’s Capital: Through the competitive Demmer Scholars Program, Abby spent a summer in Washington, D.C., interning with the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Office of Wildland Fire. Navigating high-stakes institutional workflows, she sat in executive meetings and authored critical briefing materials. Her work was directly utilized by the Secretary of the Interior during crucial wildland fire response summits.
- Deep-Dive Lab Research: After analyzing fire from a federal policy lens, Abby wanted to understand the underlying data driving those massive administrative decisions. She joined UM’s Paleoecology Fire Ecology Lab, collaborating with graduate students and leading scientists to study post-fire forest recovery. Her research tracked tree regeneration across the Pacific Northwest and mapped thousands of years of vegetation shifts in Alaskan forests.
- Frontline NGO Conservation: As a recipient of the prestigious Max Baucus Climate Scholars Program, Abby completed a summer fellowship with The Nature Conservancy. Her work culminated in a research project evaluating carbon sequestration in Northern Great Plains grasslands and a site assignment to the historic Matador Ranch in Dodson, Montana. The experience shattered her assumptions, exposing her to how legal tools like conservation easements protect working landscapes while supporting local agricultural communities.
I saw firsthand how the Department of the Interior began implementation of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act,” Abby reflects. “Given the generational investment in public lands, this was a unique opportunity to learn about how government implements directives and funding from Congress.
The Career Launch: Science-Backed Environmental Law
Every hands-on hour Abby logged in D.C., the lab, and the field directly shifted her career destination. Coming to UM, she knew she loved environmental science—but experiential learning showed her exactly how to apply it for the highest systemic impact.
When I returned to campus, I had real-world context for the concepts I was learning about in the classroom,” Abby notes. “My internships helped me hone in on my plan to pursue a career in the law because I became more aware of how the combination of law and science can have a meaningful, positive impact on land management.
The multi-layered strategy paid off immediately upon graduation. After working within the legal division of the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), Abby is now entering her second year of law school at UM, balancing her studies while clerkships for the DEQ and a prominent Missoula law firm.
Career Takeaways from Abby’s Journey
- Let real-world friction drive your focus. Abby used her personal frustrations with wildfire smoke and community risk to fuel her academic drive. Look at the real-world problems around you as potential career paths.
- Step way outside your geographic comfort zone. Growing up around the mountains of western Montana, Abby had never fully appreciated prairie ecosystems until her fellowship in eastern Montana. Experiential learning challenges your biases and uncovers hidden professional opportunities.
- Combine data with advocacy. Elite environmental attorneys don’t just know the statutes—they understand the hard science. Stacking lab work alongside policy tracking gave Abby an undeniable competitive edge.
Take Action on Your Career Journey
- Explore Career Paths in Government and Law: Check out our Virtual Career Hub to search for micro-internships, regional fellowships, and opportunities in both the public service and legal sectors.
- Explore Legislative and Policy Fellowships: Learn about national placements like the Demmer Scholars Program or regional pipelines like the Baucus Climate Scholars.
- Participate in Experiential Learning: Learn how to earn credit for internships or take part in hands-on projects through our Virtual Career Hub’s “How Do I…?” sections.
- Step Into Undergraduate Research: Explore active natural resource, forestry, and ecology lab openings via the Office of Undergraduate Research.
- Map Your Competencies: Connect with an ELCS Career Coach to learn how your field experiences, campus research, and local volunteer projects translate directly into high-caliber law school and corporate applications.
- Translate your internship into a full-time paycheck: Learn how to map your experiential learning experiences directly to the career competencies employers are hiring for by connecting with one of our career coaches.
- Stand out in graduate school interviews? Schedule a mock interview or resume-mapping session with an ELCS Career Coach to find your own unique talking points.
