Senior Advisor TMS

Water Resources Division – Southwest Region Fish and Wildlife Service

Stewards Individual Placements (Stewards) provides individuals with service and career opportunities to strengthen communities and preserve our natural resources. Participants work with federal agencies, Tribal governments, and nonprofits building institutional capacity, developing community relationships, and supporting ecosystem health.

Stewards in partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – Southwest Region, Division of Water Resources is seeking a Water Resources Intern to work on hydrologic, geomorphologic, and/or hydraulic engineering tasks to support the management of National Wildlife Refuges. The work will primarily involve computer tasks such as online data collection, investigations, report writing, and figure creation, with opportunities to focus on field work and data collection including surface and groundwater monitoring.

Position: Water Resources Intern
Term: 26 weeks, full‑time 40 hours per week
Location: Albuquerque, NM
Living Allowance: $600 per week (pre‑tax)
Ameri Corps Award: $3,447.50 (pre‑tax) upon successful completion
Start Date: Negotiable
Final date to receive applications: May 30, 2024

• Assist the Division of Water Resources in supporting 46 refuges throughout Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, and Oklahoma.
• Support water monitoring, sustainability and resilience planning, and restoration efforts.
• Perform regular work at the Division office in Albuquerque, NM; field work may include site‑specific tasks at Bosque del Apache NWR, Cibola NWR, San Bernardino NWR, Bitter Lake NWR, or other refuges as needed.
• Set up or maintain water quality and quantity monitoring stations in the field, import data into the Fish and Wildlife Service’s Water Information Systems database, perform quality control, and conduct analyses and reports.
• Create GIS‑based water infrastructure asset management databases.
• Collect and model surface water and groundwater data using geospatial tools to synthesize available data and quantify surface water hydrology.
• Work with staff biologists to learn ecosystem management and find solutions to water‑related challenges.
• Collaborate with the Engineering Division to review proposed water infrastructure improvements for appropriateness related to the watershed and refuge purpose.

• Valid driver’s license.
• Experience with Microsoft Suite.
• Geospatial coursework or experience.
• Experience with ESRI products (Arc Map or Arc Pro).
• Willingness to undergo and pass a required criminal history check.
• Strong interest in a career in natural resource conservation science.
• Eligibility to serve in Ameri Corps State & National Direct Service programs (must not have served more than 4 terms).
• Availability to work a 40-hour week for the 26-week term.
• Age between 18 and 34 years.
• High School Diploma or GED.
• Members of a Federally recognized Indian Tribe, Band, or Village;
  Alaska Native; or meeting one of the following: at least one‑half degree Indian blood derived from Tribes Indigenous to the United States; descendants of members of Federally recognized Indian Tribes, Bands or Communities who were residing on any Indian Reservation on June 1, 1934 – shown by completing BIA Form 4432.

• Proficiency with ESRI products (Arc Map or Arc Pro).
• Water Resources related coursework or experience.
• Environmental, Civil, or similar Engineering coursework or experience.
• Science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) coursework or experience.
• Natural resources or conservation related coursework or experience.

• Living Allowance: $600 per week (pre‑tax).
• Position is eligible for an Ameri Corps Education Award upon successful completion of the program: $3,447.50 (pre‑tax).
• Student loan forbearance and health insurance.
• Field skills and training opportunities including surface water monitoring, groundwater monitoring, and water quality monitoring.
• Opportunity to learn fundamentals of hydrology such as soil and vegetation losses to precipitation, watershed responses to rainfall, and hydrological response to the arid Southwest.

This program is available to all, without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, age, religion, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity or expression, political affiliation, marital or parental status, genetic information, or military service. Where a significant portion of the population eligible to be served needs services or information in a language other than English, the recipient shall take reasonable steps to provide written material of the type ordinarily available to the public in appropriate languages.