Protective Design Engineer Internship - Summer 2027

KPFF Consulting Engineers • San Francisco, CA

48d • $34 - $37 • Onsite

About The Position

This internship offers a unique opportunity to work alongside experienced engineers in San Francisco on projects focused on the safety, resilience, and security of the built environment. Interns will contribute to projects involving blast analysis, progressive collapse evaluation, anti-ram design, structural hardening, and other specialized protective design strategies for federal, commercial, and infrastructure clients. It's a chance to apply academic learning to demanding engineering challenges, understanding how structural behavior, dynamic loading, materials, analysis, and constructability integrate under stringent performance requirements. The program emphasizes hands-on engineering support for structural modeling, analysis, calculations, and design, providing specialized experience in evaluating structures for extreme conditions. Interns will receive mentorship, gain project exposure including coordination and site visits, collaborate with multidisciplinary teams, and develop technical skills for a specialized career path in structural engineering.

Requirements

• Currently enrolled in a Bachelor’s program in Civil or Structural Engineering (junior level or higher, with at least three years of completed coursework) or a Master’s program in structural engineering.
• Excellent communication and teamwork skills.
• Strong time management and organizational abilities.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Excel and Word.

Nice To Haves

• A strong passion for pursuing a career in structural or protective design engineering, ideally with interest in resilience, safety, and security of structures.
• Coursework or exposure to structural dynamics, steel design and/or concrete design.
• Experience with structural analysis software (ETABS, SAP2000, RISA, or LS-DYNA).

Responsibilities

• Support structural modeling, analysis, calculations, and design for active protective design projects.
• Evaluate structures for blast loads, progressive collapse, and other extreme conditions.
• Gain insight into project coordination, construction administration, and site visits.
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams, clients, and project partners to solve complex engineering challenges.
• Build technical skills and explore a specialized career path within structural engineering.

Benefits

• Paid overtime opportunities when project needs require additional hours.
• Exposure to a wide variety of projects that add real value to your academic and professional development.
• Mentorship and training that are part of KPFF’s investment in future engineers.
• Networking and career growth opportunities, including the potential for full-time employment after graduation.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Intern