DEPARTMENT OF CITY PLANNING SPRING 2021 CREDIT-BEARING INTERNSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

Applicants must be matriculated students in an accredited undergraduate or graduate program and enrolled in a credit-bearing course to apply. Interested applicants should complete submit their applications by Friday, December 4th, 2020 at 12noon using this link

(https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DCPSpring21InternshipApplication).

Please carefully read the below internship work program description and the required skills to ensure that you qualify for these internship. Ensure that your relevant experiences are included in your resume and biography. The majority of the internship work will occur remotely. There may be a possibility of office work or site visits, which will be communicated by the hiring manager.

All candidates will need access to a computer and internet connection to participate in this program. Once chosen, candidates must provide proof of enrollment in a credit-bearing course. A two-day virtual orientation will occur during the week of January 25th, 2021.

If you have any questions, please email DCPRecruit@planning.nyc.gov.

 

DIVISION: Bronx Borough Office.

Intern Work Program (August 31st -December 4th)

The intern will support the Bronx Office’s Neighborhood Planning efforts, specifically the Bronx Metro-North neighborhood Study. This would include a range of tasks including design and graphics; research and analysis; outreach and communications.

Specific skills needed for this internship.

Any of the following are helpful: Familiarity with data analysis, research and any associated programs; ArcGIS mapping and analysis; Design and associated programs (Adobe CS, Sketch-up, Rhino); social media and web-based outreach programs.

Minimum number of weekly hours:  20 hours

 

DIVISION: Brooklyn Borough Office -Urban Design Team

Intern Work Program:

The Brooklyn Office is looking for a motivated and enthusiastic Urban Design intern to assist in our work program by handling independent projects and supporting larger initiatives. This career-building opportunity will provide first-hand experience with the City’s zoning and land use process. The position is perfect for a self-starter who is interested in urban design, planning, and policy. Candidates must be creative, organized, flexible, and comfortable working in a remote environment. The urban design internship at the borough office would allow an exposure to the work urban designers do at city government and the intern would be shadowing an urban designer and helping them out with discrete tasks of analysis based on the work program. In parallel, the intern would be assigned a project that will help them familiarize themselves with the various tools an urban designer uses to communicate ideas visually.

Specific skills needed for the internship:

(1) Strong design and presentation skills; (2) Enthusiasm about planning and design issues in New York City and the desire to learn how policy and regulations shape the City; (3) Proficiency with Arc GIS and spatial analysis preferred; (4) Proficiency with Adobe Creative Suite; (5) Basic understanding of zoning; (6) Motivated self-starter with the ability to work independently. Candidates with interest and active engagement in community-based organizations are strongly encouraged to apply as well

Minimum number of weekly hours: 10 – 20hours

 

DIVISION: Brooklyn Borough Office

The Brooklyn Office is looking for a motivated and enthusiastic intern to assist in our work program by handling independent projects and supporting larger initiatives. This career-building opportunity will provide first-hand experience with the City’s zoning and land use process. The position is perfect for a self-starter who is interested in urban planning, design, and policy. Candidates must be creative, organized, flexible, and comfortable working in a remote environment.

Specific skills needed for this internship.

(1) Enthusiasm about planning and design issues in New York City and the desire to learn how policy and regulations shape the City; (2) Strong research and analytic skills; (3) Proficiency with Arc GIS and spatial analysis preferred; (4) Proficiency with Adobe Creative Suite; (5) Basic understanding of zoning; (6) Strong graphic design and layout skills; (7) Excellent written, verbal and communication skills; (8) Motivated self-starter with the ability to work independently. Candidates with interest and active engagement in community-based organizations are strongly encouraged to apply as well. Multiple positions are available; not all skills are necessary to apply.

Minimum number of weekly hours:  10 – 20 hours

DIVISION: Counsel

Intern Work Program:

Counsel’s office is seeking a Spring intern to: (1) review existing legal document templates used in connection with different types of zoning actions and create other templates where needed; (2) update Counsel directory of the types of legal documents required by the Zoning Resolution and the associated ZR Sections; (3) review revised legal documents and attachments for comprehensiveness, accuracy and responsiveness to staff’s prior comments; (4) assist with preparing Counsel web page to be added to DCP’s intranet; (5) review and help coordinate responses to Freedom of Information Law requests; (6) assist with preparation of conflicts of interest waiver requests to the City’s Conflicts of Interest Board; (7) assist with preparation of presentations and research involving projects involving zoning and land use, as needed.

Specific skills needed for this internship:

Strong writing skills, attention to details. Law student preferred; for non-law students, interest in law or pre-law coursework a plus. MS Word, PowerPoint, Adobe Acrobat, proficiency with computers, generally, and research (legal, preferably)

Minimum number of weekly hours: 14 hours

 

DIVISION: Environmental Assessment & Review Division (EARD)

Intern Work Program:

The Environmental Assessment and Review Division is looking for a motivated intern to assist our work program related to Environmental Review Noise analyses. This opportunity will provide hands on experience with the Noise and Construction Noise categories as noted in the 2014 CEQR Technical Manual. The position is ideal for someone with prior Noise environmental review experience who can hit the ground running.

Specific skills needed for the internship:

Experience in noise-related environmental review; prior understanding of the guidance of the 2014 CEQR Technical Manual.

Minimum number of weekly hours: 15 hours but more is preferred so intern can be included in regular meetings and assigned to long term projects.

 

DIVISION: Housing Economic Development (HED) -CEQR

Intern Work Program:

The intern would support HED’s work in preparing revisions to the CEQR Socioeconomic Conditions Technical Manual(TM). Specifically, the intern would provide an assessment of data sources and research methodologies in recent studies by academics, advocates, and research institutes on the causesof gentrification and residential and business displacement. Collaborative work with Counsel’s Office and the Environmental Assessment & Review Division (EARD).

Skill needed for this internship:

Intern should be a master’s candidate in public policy, planning, or economics. They should have a background in social sciences, statistics and research methods, as well as familiarity with socioeconomic data. Should be proficient in Excel and have strong research and writing skills.

Minimum number of weekly hours: 15 hours but more is preferred so intern can be included in division meetings and the team can account for other commitments related to the agency’s internship program.

 

DIVISION: Housing Economic Development (HED) -Distribution & Retail.

Intern Work Program:

The intern would prepare a qualitative assessment of how cities are planning for last-mile distribution needs and the growth of online retail. Collaborative work opportunity with the Regional Planning Division and the Urban Design Division.

Skills needed for this internship:

Master’s candidate preferred, but undergraduate student with relevant background or interest could be a good fit as well. Strong research and writing skills, as well as familiarity with searching online journals, experiences with qualitative research methods, and ability to conduct video interviews are necessary.

Minimum number of weekly hours: 15 hours but more is preferred so intern can be included in division meetings and the team can account for other commitments related to the agency’s internship program.

 

DIVISION: Housing Economic Development (HED) -General

Intern Work Program:

The intern would support several projects within division, including preparing materials related to the Uniform Land Use Review Process applications (ULURPs)for the Citywide Hotel Special Permit and FRESH II text amendments; analysis to support miscellaneous data requests; and data cleanup of historic housing permit data.

Skills needed for this internship:

Intern should be interested in learning about planning or public policy. Comfort with excel and familiarity with GIS is necessary. This is a good opportunity for an undergraduate student, or fist-year Master’s in Urban Planning student.

Minimum number of weekly hours: 15 hours, but more is preferred so that we can include them in division meetings and account for other commitments related to the agency’s internship program.

 

DIVISION: Information Technology Division (ITD)–Enterprise Data Management

Intern Work Program:

The exact project will depend on the intern’s skills and interests, and Enterprise Data Management’s 2021 priorities. Projects that the intern could participate in include improvements to automated QA/QC procedures, work on data pipelines such as the ACS/Census data package, and automation of data and metadata updates to various applications.

Skills needed for this internship:

Experience with python, SQL, and Linux servers; excellent written and verbal communication skills; and experience with git and GitHub.

Minimum number of weekly hours: 14 hours

 

DIVISION: Land Use Review(LUR)

Intern Work Program:

The intern would support LUR’s public meetings process from a production standpoint, including compilation of data for the preparation of meeting agendas, scheduling and co-hosting of public meetings on ZOOM, and digital file management / link sharing pre-and post-public meeting. For the full internship experience, the intern may be asked to come to the office to support usage of the AV system. If an intern is unable to travel and to work in the office, this is understandable.

Skills needed for this internship:

Intern should possess strong technological interest, if not savvy. Should be organized, detail-oriented and deadline-driven.

Minimum number of weekly hours: 15 hours.

DIVISION: Manhattan Office

Intern Work Program:

Working with the agency’s citywide Privately-Owned Public Space (POPS) team on public space research, document collection assembly, and response to Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) requests.

Skills needed for this internship:

Interest in open space and urban design. Desire to dig into highly technical zoning and drawings to assist work of POPS Program Manager.

Minimum number of weekly hours: 14 hours.

 

DIVISION: Planning Coordination

Intern Work Program:

Planning Coordination is seeking an intern to assist in the comprehensive analysis of the latest community board needs and budget requests data, as well as the historical data collected over the last 5 years, both qualitative and quantitative. This work will also include spatial analysis and the opportunity to develop series of maps using mapping tools. There will also be an opportunity to assist in developing materials that will be utilized to communicate findings and share analysis with a variety of stakeholders, including all 59 community boards, City agency representatives, City Hall, and elected officials.

Skills needed for this internship:

Ability to work independently, under direction from supervisors, and collaboratively within a team. Strong time and project management skills; ability to complete assignments within target timeframes, proactively flagging problems for supervisors when needed. Intermediate understanding of statistical analysis and comfort using and large data sets, and synthesizing takeaways for multiple audiences. Intermediate knowledge of Excel required; advanced understanding preferred. Experience using ArcGIS and online mapping tools such as Carto or Online ArcGIS preferred. Experience creating presentations for diverse audiences preferred. Strong interpersonal communication skills preferred.

Minimum number of weekly hours: 21 hours, with two consecutive days per week.

 

DIVISION: Press Office/Communications

Intern Work Program:

The intern would assist the press office with our promotional work and outreach, including drafting and monitoring social media posts, prepping press releases, transcribing interviews and taking notes on various meetings on DCP initiatives.

Skills need for this internship:

Ability to work effectively with others; manage multiple projects with strict deadlines; excellent writing, computer and social media skills. MS Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Adobe Acrobat, basic internet research. InDesign and video skills are a plus. Spanish or other foreign language proficiency a plus.

Minimum number of hours needed: 10 -30 hours.

 

DIVISION: Queens Office

Intern Work Program:

The Queens Office is seeking an intern to assist in the borough’s complex work program. This career-building opportunity will provide first-hand experience with the City’s zoning and land use process. The position is perfect for a self-starter who is interested in urban planning, design, and policy, and the type of work would include a range of tasks including urban design, mapping and graphic design, research and analysis. Candidates must be creative, organized, flexible, and comfortable working in a remote environment.

Skills needed for this internship:

Enthusiasm about planning and design issues in New York City and the desire to learn how policy and regulations shape the City; Strong research and analytic skills; ArcGIS mapping and analysis; Design and associated programs (Adobe CS, Sketch-up, Rhino); Basic understanding of zoning; Motivated self-starter with the ability to work independently; Excellent written, verbal and communication skills.

Minimum number of weekly hours: 15 – 24 hours.

 

DIVISION: Regional Planning

Intern Work Program:

The intern will support continued analysis and data visualization efforts to describe the migration and population mobility effects of COVID-19. Using cell phone, mail forwarding, and real estate data, the intern will help compile compelling info briefs, PowerPoint-style and web-based data briefs that help describe the spatial patterns and magnitudes of population movement.

Skills needed for this internship:

Strong quantitative analytic, geospatial mapping, and data visualization and/or graphic design skills, as well as a clear visual and written style. Data work will be primarily in Microsoft Excel and ArcGIS Online, with additional presentation work in other Microsoft or Adobe Creative Suite products. Additional experience in other platforms, including open-source software or data visualization using Python-oriented programming packages, is a plus. Will require a work sample of visual and written display of a fact pattern or idea.

Minimum number of weekly hours: 10 – 30 hours.

 

DIVISION: Staten Island Office

Intern Work Program:

The intern would support the Staten Island Office’s(SIO) large workload that includes technical review of private applications, and support with analysis and research for ongoing priority initiatives including the Staten Island (SI)Special Districts Update, Homes Behind Homes study, SI Geography of Jobs, and the North Shore 2030 study update/BRT work.

Skills needed for this internship:

Familiarity with data and excel, GIS, and an interest in planning/policy for low-mid density neighborhoods.

Minimum number of weekly hours: 14 -21 hours.

 

DIVISION: Urban Design

Intern Work Program:

The Urban Design (UD) Office is seeking an intern with strong drawing, design and communication skills to help develop and assist in a few major initiatives for the UD division. This may include but is not limited to the development of NYC’s 3D digital model as part of the office’s Digital Practice Initiative and assisting other office staff with research tasks and projects. This work may include research into the cities datasets since 2014 that are available at the department, manual development of 3D models and incorporation into the larger NYC Digital 3D model and expanding a 3D Block Library as a toolkit to improve the efforts of public engagement and communication in a digital/telecommunications environment. They may also need to assist the divisions staff in; 1. Research on Open Programs in response to the effects of the Pandemic on the public realm; 2. Assist with transitioning an illustrative and dimensional guide for designing NYC to an interactive digital platform; 3. Assist and lead research efforts for urban design trends across the city in the recent years as well as document these trends graphically into to be easily communication with others across the agency.

Skills needed for this internship:

Interest in Urban Design with strong research and graphic communication skills, potential skills in 3D modeling and some expanded 3D modeling software knowledge, potential but not necessary experience or skills in web-design platforms. Proficiency with Adobe Creative Suite desired and strong will to explore what design means to you in your city.

Minimum number of weekly hours: 15 hours or more preferred.

 

DIVISION: Zoning

Intern Work Program:

The Zoning Division seeks someone with an interest in planning and urban history to help catalog the history of zoning changes made since 1961, as well as assist Division staff with other research tasks and projects. This work will include researching the history of zoning changes through archival materials available at the Department, determining and creating metadata for each amendment, and creating a presentation of research findings. 1. Review and catalog key information for zoning changes since 1961 to help the Division better understand the history of the Zoning Resolution; 2. Assist division staff with other research and planning studies and attend meetings with other divisions at DCP; 3. Assist in the creation of presentations and help present to other Department staff, and other stakeholders as warranted.

Skills needed for this internship:

Interest in urban planning history, with background in document research and database creation.

Minimum number of weekly hours: 10 -20 hours.