Fire and Life Safety Engineering Intern - Summer 2027

About the role

WSP USA hosts hundreds of interns across the United States to gain hands‑on, meaningful work experience to enhance their education and professional aptitude. Interns gain exposure to real projects while working side by side with senior staff. Through the Developing Professionals Network, interns gain mentorship, networking opportunities and lifelong career connections. The Fire and Life Safety (FLS) team is seeking a full‑time Fire & Life Safety Engineering Intern – Summer 2027 to work out of the Boston, MA office; other locations that will also be considered are New York, NY; Columbia, MD; Arlington, VA; Dallas, TX; and Houston, TX. This temporary position is for individuals currently enrolled in an Undergraduate or Graduate degree program. The 12‑week internship is part of the WSP Summer Internship Program scheduled to start on May 17, 2027, with individual start dates that may be flexible.

Responsibilities

• Research of building code, life safety code, and fire code requirements, including familiarity with both ICC and NFPA codes (International Building Code and NFPA 101).
• Assist with the design of fire protection and life safety engineering systems, including automatic fire sprinkler systems, fire detection and alarm systems, smoke management systems, and egress systems.
• Assist in the preparation of fire engineering calculations, including smoke modeling and evacuation analysis from simple hand calculations to complex 3D computational modeling.
• Assist in the commissioning of fire alarm, fire suppression, smoke control, and life safety systems.
• Perform routine engineering functions and provide entry‑level technical assistance on various code requirements, calculations, and design strategies to develop performance‑based solutions for projects.
• Under general supervision, assist with review of architectural drawings for compliance with building and fire code requirements, and with producing fire safety strategy (basis of design) documents to inform and support the chosen building characteristics throughout the design process.
• Support a variety of engineering tasks with the goal to develop technical, social, and ethical skills.
• Learn basic principles of Fire Protection Engineering, working under direct supervision of engineers.
• Assist with project research, field work, and preliminary design calculations and analysis.
• Support preparation of final design plans, special provisions, and cost estimates.
• Meet required schedules while producing quality work.
• Coordinate design efforts with multi‑discipline teams.
• Ability to perform code research independently to solve technical issues and dictate basis of design.
• Complete training on assigned tasks.
• Exercise responsible and ethical decision‑making regarding company funds, resources and conduct, and adhere to WSP’s Code of Conduct and related policies and procedures.
• Perform additional responsibilities as required by business needs.

Requirements

• Actively enrolled in an accredited Fire Protection Engineering, or related Undergraduate program with an anticipated graduation date of August 2027 or later.
• Must be 18 years of age or older.
• Demonstrated interest in Fire Protection & Life Safety or related field and a strong desire to advance