Power System Optimization Intern - Fall 2026/Spring 2027

WSP•Houston, TX

18h•Onsite

About The Position

WSP USA is hiring a part-time, temporary Power System Optimization Intern for its Power and Energy Team in the Houston, Texas office. The internship is intended for a student currently enrolled in an undergraduate or graduate degree program and is anticipated to take place during the Fall 2026/Spring 2027 period. Interns gain hands-on experience on real projects, work alongside senior staff, and receive mentorship and networking opportunities through WSP’s Developing Professionals Network. No relocation or housing assistance is provided. The intern will support engineering work involving power system optimization, renewable and mission-critical power systems, data center power systems, and microgrids. Work includes developing and validating optimization models, performing power system simulations and reliability analyses, evaluating grid-connected and islanded infrastructure, and communicating technical results. The intern will collaborate with engineering and project management teams, contribute to technical and strategic planning materials, complete assigned training, and follow WSP’s conduct and safety policies.

Requirements

Actively enrolled in an accredited undergraduate program in Electrical Engineering, specializing in power and energy systems operation and planning, or a related field; anticipated graduation date of June 2026 or later.
Must be at least 18 years old.
Demonstrated interest in Electrical Engineering or a related field and a strong desire to advance skills related to WSP’s work and projects.
Competent interpersonal and communication skills, including the ability to express ideas effectively and professionally to engineering and non-engineering audiences.
Ability to take direction from leadership, mentors, and managers to execute projects.
Basic proficiency with technical writing, office automation, software, spreadsheets, technology, and tools.
Track record of upholding workplace safety and ability to comply with WSP’s health, safety, drug/alcohol, and harassment policies.
Authorization to work in the United States at the start of the internship.

Nice To Haves

Currently pursuing a PhD in Electrical Engineering, specializing in power and energy systems operation and planning.
Experience with microgrid operation and planning optimization, system-level reliability and resilience analysis, and battery energy storage applications.
Proficiency in Python for programming, numerical modeling, and data processing.
Experience with renewable energy integration, load flow analysis, power quality, and grid-tied inverter systems.
Experience with system dispatch modeling and revenue optimization of battery energy storage systems in ISO markets such as ERCOT, CAISO, and PJM.
Knowledge of optimization problems, including LP, MILP, and NLP, and appropriate solvers such as Gurobi, IPOPT, and GLPK; familiarity with AI/ML applications in power and energy systems.
Record of technical publications or presentations in energy systems operation, optimization, or planning.
Experience with power systems software tools such as PSSE and PSCAD for data center applications.

Responsibilities

Support engineering tasks while developing technical, social, and ethical skills.
Develop and validate optimization models for generation mixes including solar PV, wind, battery storage, fuel cells, hybrid microgrids, and data centers.
Model data center power systems, including UPS systems, generator integration, redundancy configurations such as N, N+1, and 2N, and failure modes.
Perform reliability, availability, and maintainability (RAM) analysis for data center microgrids.
Perform steady-state and dynamic simulations, system-level optimization, sensitivity analysis, and techno-economic evaluations of renewable and mission-critical power systems.
Evaluate energy infrastructure integration in grid-connected and islanded modes for utility and data center applications.
Collaborate with cross-disciplinary engineering and project management teams.
Communicate technical results through documentation, reports, and stakeholder presentations.
Support white papers and strategic energy systems operation and planning efforts.
Complete training on assigned tasks.
Make responsible and ethical decisions regarding company funds, resources, and conduct, and comply with WSP’s Code of Conduct and related policies and procedures.
Perform additional responsibilities as required by business needs.