The University of Washington Tacoma has several
internships for energetic undergraduate students at the Center for Urban Waters, a collaboration among UW Tacoma, the City of Tacoma, and the Puget Sound Partnership. These paid positions are an excellent opportunity to gain valuable research experience working side-by-side with environmental professionals engaged in significant regional projects. Currently enrolled students and recent graduates with strengths in fields such as environmental science and engineering, social sciences, public health, mathematics, GIS, computer science, environmental studies, and technical communications are encouraged to apply.
Eligibility and expectations
The Urban Waters Summer Intern Program is open to current undergraduate students and recent graduates from any UW campus, as well as other colleges and universities. Interns must commit to working a minimum of 200 hours at $12/hour over the course of the summer (mid-June to mid-September). Specific duties will vary depending on the project to which an intern is assigned, but may include work in a laboratory, office, or outdoor setting. Projects are not limited to the ones described below. Interns will be required to attend an orientation on June 8th. The summer experience will conclude with an opportunity for interns to present the results of their work on September 17th. Interns are responsible for their own transportation to and from the Center for Urban Waters in Tacoma. Send current resume, and a cover letter describing interest in the position, via email to:
urbanh2o@uw.edu . Please indicate which of the specific potential projects listed below you are most interested in. Review of applications will begin after
May 1, 2015.
Scientific research positions
Research interns will be placed within a number of ongoing research activities, including:
A. Environmental social science
The Environmental Social Science intern will help with cleaning data and basic data analysis for a project with the Quinault Indian Nation looking at cultural ecosystem services. The intern must be proficient in Excel. Ideal candidate would have had a class in statistics. There may be an opportunity to travel to the Quinault and work with local resource managers as part of the project.
B. Environmental fate of trace contaminants
The summer intern will assist with experimental design, performing laboratory-based research on contaminant fate (photolysis and soil column transport), and laboratory analysis of trace contaminants using LC/MS/MS and LC/QTOF instrumentation.
C. Multivariate analysis of water quality data
The intern will develop and apply pattern recognition techniques to explore spatial and temporal patterns of pollutant sources in surface waters and sediments.
D. Detecting wood smoke in indoor air
Validation of a sampling and analysis method to measure ambient levels of the wood smoke tracer levoglucosan in residential air.
E. Genetic screening of the Thea Foss microbiome
Intern should have knowledge of, or interest in, genetic sciences (RNA/DNA fundamentals).
F. Support method development for highly advanced analytical instrumentation
The Center for Urban Waters is home to one of the region's only QTOFs - an Agilent 6530 quadrupole-time of flight tandem mass spectrometer (QTOF) interfaced with both liquid and gas chromatographs (LC-MS/MS, GC-MS/MS). Interns will assist with the extraction of biological tissues, sediment, and/or water samples in conjunction with developing analytical methods.
Web communications positions
Website interns will contribute content to the
Encyclopedia of Puget Sound , the flagship publication of the Puget Sound Institute.
G. Historical document archive
Populate an improved archive section on the Encyclopedia of Puget Sound featuring historical reports and archival information relating to Puget Sound science and recovery. The ideal intern will have a broad understanding of science publications and interest in web content management.
H. Shoreline habitat imagery collection
Using publicly accessible, georeferenced photography collections, gather and publish images featuring shoreline habitats described in the Encyclopedia of Puget Sound. Requires familiarity with image editing, Washington state shoreline geography, and web content management.
