Summer Student Trainee (Civil Engineering)
The position is located within the Eastern Federal Lands Highway Division (EFLHD), Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). The student trainee assists professional engineers, construction managers, and/or engineering technicians.
The majority of the available positions will be in Ashburn, VA. Only a couple positions will be located in Sevierville, TN. There will be several construction assignments located on various project sites in the Eastern U.S. (exact locations TBD).
The ideal candidate for this position has a desire to learn about the various aspects of highway and transportation engineering.
The Pathways Student Trainee (Civil Engineering) will intern in one of the following areas within the various branches:
Construction
- Inspect and test assignments on construction projects.
- Perform field sampling and test construction materials.
- Participate in partner meetings.
- Serve as an instrument operator or rodman on construction survey of projects or monitor contractor stakeout, including staking of centerline, slope staking, drainage staking, structural staking, and setting of grade stakes.
- Compute and balance quantities.
Highway Design
- Prepare roadway plans and quantity calculations, title sheets, plan profile sheets, alignment layout, supplementary drawings, earthwork calculations, and pipe and box culvert structure detailing.
- Compute curves and traverses.
- Assemble plans, specifications, and estimate (PS&E) documents.
- Perform basic drafting.
Environment
- Review and summarize technical reports and NEPA documents.
- Prepare and complete environmental and historic documents.
- Review environmental impacts of proposed projects.
- Prepare environmental compliance documentation.
Planning and Programming
- Collect and assemble data.
- Assist in preparing damage site assessments and reports for Emergency Relief projects.
- Prepare environmental compliance documentation.
- Prepare agreements for projects.
Technical Services
- Perform duties in the areas of technology development, safety, pavements and materials, and road inventory. Details of assignment to be determined by specific discipline.
Pavements
- Assist in Plan, Specifications & Estimates (PS&E) review process for pavement design projects.
- Prepare design and construction recommendations for new and rehabilitation pavement projects.
- Perform pavement-testing services.
- Conduct pavement field investigations.
- Operate and maintain the Pavement Management System.
Road Inventory Program
- Coordinate and collect roadway engineering data using computerized and electronic visual equipment in a vehicle that includes video cameras, distance measuring devices, electronic horizontal and vertical slope detectors, electronic rut and roughness indicators, and Global Positioning Systems (GPS).
- Analyze entire road systems to be inventoried and devise collection procedures.
Materials
- Log in samples, prepare samples for testing, monitor testing procedures, and record data of materials such as concrete, soils, asphalt, and roadway aggregates.
- Visually inspect materials and determine sizes to be crushed; lift and handle samples; observe and operate sieve shakers.
- Retrieve and compile data.
- Research past mix designs and compile comparison data.
Geotechnical
- Perform geotechnical design calculations and technical reports.
- Perform project site geological and geotechnical mapping, logging, borehole data and samples; sketch details of test pit investigations; obtain data from geotechnical instrumentation; operate hand tools for field investigations; collect, bag, and label soil and rock samples in preparation for shipping; and perform other geotechnical field assistance.
- Enter field data into Geotechnical software programs.
Hydraulics
- Perform Hydrologic and Hydraulic design calculations.
- Assist in developing drainage design and Storm Water Management Plans.
- Prepare technical reports and cost estimates.
- Prepare project specifications and review of PS&E packages.
- Gather project site information, inspect construction, confirm post-construction BMP installation, or identify assets.
- Review and summarize permits or correspondence from regulatory agencies.
Bridge Design, Management, and Inspection
- Prepare project specifications and perform design and quality check on PS&E packages.
- Prepare field assessments, gather information, and perform preliminary scoping of projects.
- Compile structural analysis and design of concrete, steel, or timber bridge components.
- Use Microstation CADD to prepare bridge plan sheets.
- Perform calculations of quantities and basic engineering calculations.
- Operate bridge inspection equipment, take and record data, develop sketches and prepares required reports.
- Perform structures inventory and evaluate data
Survey
- Assist survey crew.
- Perform basic engineering computations using formulas, hand held calculators, and electronic survey equipment.
- Serve as instrument operator and/or target cube holder on construction survey and/or engineering stakeout of project or assist in monitoring contract stakeout.
Transportation Operations (Safety and Traffic)
- Review of PS&E packages on projects involving safety systems and provide for early safety consideration in the planning, design, and construction phases of highway projects.
- Perform traffic and safety studies including: speed studies, highway operation studies, queuing analysis, traffic calming studies, work zone safety, pedestrian safety, road safety audits, and crash data analysis.