Internships

Paid and unpaid internships are often arranged between the Geography Department and local employers or government agencies. Students who participate in our internship program gain on-the-job experience which greatly enhances their post-graduation employment opportunities. Some internships develop into full-time paid positions upon graduation.

You may receive 1-6 hours undergraduate credit (GEO490) or graduate credit (GEO690) for internships. An internship with a single agency/business performing the same or similar duties can only count for 3 hours credit. A second internship with a second agency/business or with significantly new duties may count for an additional 3 hours credit. See Dr. James Leonard for more details.

Internship guidelines

Geography students have completed internships at a dizzying array of agencies and businesses, including:

• Aurora Colorado Water, Conservation Division
• Wayne County, WV Assessor’s Office
• Oak Ridge National Laboratory, TN
• Steptoe-Johnson law firm, Charleston, WV (oil and gas property rights mapping)
• WV Governor’s Internship Program (various GIS-related positions)
• National Weather Service, Charleston, WV
• Chesapeake Energy, Charleston, WV
• WV Department of Highways, Huntington, WV
• Huntington, WV Planning and Zoning Department
• US Army Corps of Engineers, Huntington, WV
• WOWK TV meteorology department, Huntington, WV
• Arctic Region Supercomputing Center, Fairbanks, AK
• WV Department of Environmental Protection, Charleston, WV
• Putnam County, WV Planning Department
• Charleston, WV Planning and Zoning Department
• WV State Historical Preservation Office, Charleston, WV
• WV Department of Highways, Charleston, WV
• Region III Planning, Huntington, WV
• KYOWVA Interstate Planning, Catlettsburg, KY
• WV Health Care Authority, Charleston, WV
• Rahall Transportation Institute, Huntington, WV
• FIVCO Area Development District, KY

Other options for internships could include:

• WV State Tax Department
• Huntington, WV Parks District
• Huntington, WV Public Works
• Beckley, WV Public Works
• WV State GIS Coordinator’s Office
• WV Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management
• WV Bureau for Public Health
• US Census Bureau, DC headquarters, check http://www.census.gov/hrd/www/jobs/student.html
• County assessor’s offices
• County 911 offices

Internships in GIScience

GIS Internships