About Houston-Galveston Area Council

Local governments touch the lives of citizens in our region every day, in many ways. The Houston-Galveston Area Council is the regional council of local governments for our area, serving an area of 12,500 square miles and more than 7 million people. H-GAC helps local governments, and their citizens address issues that cross city limits and county lines. The work is important because our region is growing rapidly. Local governments must meet today’s needs and prepare for a better future.

H-GAC helps local government consider issues and cooperate in solving today’s problems while also planning for the future. Total membership stands at 131 local governments – all 13 county governments, 107 cities, and 11 school districts. H-GAC is governed by a 37-member Board of Directors composed of local elected officials who serve on the governing bodies of those member local governments.

H-GAC provides many tools to support the region’s local governments: information, region-wide plans, and services concentrated in areas such as Community and Environmental Planning, Data Services, Human Services, Public Services and Transportation Planning

 

The H-GAC Internship Program is designed to bridge the gap between the classroom and your future.

H-GAC is dedicated to developing the talent of up-and-coming college students who strive for academic success and demonstrate leadership. Our Internships provide real-life work experiences that are closely related to your field of study, as well as integrating you into our H-GAC culture. In addition to challenging work and making a valuable contribution, you will have the opportunity to be coached and mentored by some of the top leaders in our agency. High performing interns may have the opportunity for future internships or possible full-time opportunities with H-GAC.

   

POSITION SUMMARY:

This internship opportunity is for a college student with a major in Urban Transposrtation Planning, Environmental Science, Economics, Geospatial Science, or Data Science to work with a mentor and receive on-the-job training while gaining professional experience. Learn directly from experienced professionals and managers with extensive knowledge in workforce quality monitoring, database management, and public outreach. Apply academic studies to contribute to the research of this project and the impact it will have on our customers. Participate in real, meaningful work assignments to learn how your academic experience translates to the professional environment. This position is a temporary intern position that is not benefits-eligible.

 

UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT

Responsibilities:

•       Developing trip origin and destination dashboard by utilizing Location based data.
•       Processing of traffic count data
•       Database development/entry of traffic data
•       GIS activities such as creating, editing of regularly updated geospatial datasets related to transportation, socioeconomic, and environmental
•       Adding/updating metadata of GIS enterprise database (SDE) layers
•       Reorganizing GIS layers in SDEs and network drives
•       Developing printed versions of cartographic product (map making in ArcGIS environment)
•       Gathering and preprocessing of water quality and air quality data from various sources for H-GAC's environmental model developments

ENTRY QUALIFICATIONS:

Minimal – Enrolled as a college Junior –Graduate level studies, 3.0+ GPA, must be enrolled in a minimum of 9 credit hours in the semester preceding or following the internship term. The hours will be 20-40 hours per week. The pay will range from $14.00 - $18.00 an hour.

Optimal –

•       Basic knowledge of Geospatial theory, applications, and cartographic design
•       Introductory experience with ESRI ArcGIS packages such as ArcGIS Desktop and/or ArcGIS Pro
•       Knowledge of both vector and raster geospatial data and basic data processing techniques
•       Knowledge of databases such as MS Access, Excel, SQL
•       Ability to work effectively in a team environment

 

GRADUATE STUDENT

Responsibilities:

•       Developing trip origin and destination dashboard by utilizing Location-based data
•       Processing of traffic count data
•       Reviewing (QC) airport survey data
•       Research on regional socioeconomic trends (employment/unemployment, Commercial and Residential real estate activities, etc.) and applicability of H-GAC's forecast data
•       Researching and collecting remote sensing data (ex. Satellite imageries, Aerial, LiDAR) from various sources and preprocessing for DAR geospatial data development efforts
•       Developing a traffic data visualization platform using Tableau or ArcGIS Online
•       Developing regional 3D building datasets that include existing building information and future developments
•       Developing training data for object detection such as building footprints and land cover using deep learning models
•       Collecting/acquiring input data and research for H-GAC's air and water quality model development efforts
•       Using of elevation data and delineating catchment/watershed boundaries for flood model

 

ENTRY QUALIFICATIONS:

Minimal – Graduate level studies, 3.0+ GPA, must be enrolled in a minimum of 6 credit hours in the semester preceding or following the internship term. The hours will be 20-40 hours per week. The pay will range from $14.00 - $18.00 an hour.

Optimal –

•       Intermediate knowledge in Geospatial theory, applications, and cartographic design
•       Experience with ESRI ArcGIS packages such as ArcGIS Desktop and/or ArcGIS Pro
•       Knowledge on both vector and raster geospatial data and processing techniques such as spatial analysis, and image processing
•       Ability to perform tasks with limited supervision and work effectively in a team environment
•       Working knowledge on databases such as MS Access, Excel, SQL
•       Experience with SAS, Python, Tableau is a plus