Description
INTERNSHIP TITLE: Geospatial Analytics & Mapping Intern (US-Based Applicants ONLY)
INTERN WORKSITE LOCATION: Remote
DATES OF INTERNSHIP: August 2025 - December 2025
HOURS PER WEEK: 20 hours
INTERNS SUPERVISOR & CONTACT INFORMATION: Geospatial Technology Manager
FUNDING AVAILABLE FOR THE INTERNSHIP: $1603.50/month (part-time: 20 hours/week)
Mercy Corps responsibilities
For the duration of this internship assignment the intern will receive:
Training and supervisory support
Access to Mercy Corps online tools
All other tools, materials and communication requirements for this project
Intern responsibilities
Intern will remain responsible for all costs associated with:
Laptop for working remotely
Accommodation, travel and living expenses
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
Mercy Corps is a leading global organization powered by the belief that a better world is possible. In disaster, in hardship, in more than 40 countries around the world, we partner to put bold solutions into action โ helping people triumph over adversity and build stronger communities from within.
The field of GIS, Earth Observation and Artificial Intelligence is growing rapidly within the humanitarian community. In light of these developments, Mercy Corps is working to enhance its geospatial operations, support and products, ensuring that we have the correct tools, data and structures in place to harness these powerful technologies to meet the immediate needs of programs and teams in carrying out their humanitarian and development work.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
The intern will learn about and contribute to applied GIS and Remote Sensing for humanitarian contexts including the specific needs of Mercy Corps teams and programs, the use cases for analysis and mapping and the core data and analytical needs for operational success.
The intern will have the opportunity to learn and employ skills productionizing workflows in a cloud environment, using cloud and desktop geospatial tools, and supporting internal capacity building at an international humanitarian organization
DELIVERABLES:
The Geospatial Intern will support the objectives of the T4D Data Science team in the following ways:
The intern will work with the T4D team to develop tutorials, templates and other resources supporting our recently published agency Cartographic Guidelines. This may involve compiling and reworking existing guidance, developing new guidance, and scripting automated analyses or products using the Cartographic Guidelines.
Collaboratively develop a web map / application (likely employing ArcGIS Online) with one of Mercy Corpsโ program teams
Support with ad-hoc analyses as needed by T4D, other HQ teams and country teams. This may be analysis using desktop software (e.g. QGIS) or programmatic workflows (Python, Google Earth Engine, etc). Some examples of possible projects could include:
Sourcing, cleaning and preparing data for analysis
Calculating, mapping, and interpreting remote sensing indices to support country team program design and adaptation
Supporting on the implementation of geospatial foundational models in a program use case
Developing/contributing to software packages to access commonly used APIs for geospatial analysis
Supporting teams with making maps for reports or monitoring
Researching and reporting or developing training tools on new geospatial tools, resources, and data sources
Contributing to an inventory of geospatial tools, data and analysis across the organization
Productionizing geospatial analyses using cloud platforms
THE IDEAL CANDIDATE HAS THESE QUALIFICATIONS:
University degree in progress or recently completed (within 1 year) in relevant discipline (GIS, Geography, Remote Sensing/Earth Observation, Geoinformatics, Data Science, Computer Science, Engineering, and related fields). APPLICANTS FOR THIS INTERNSHIP MUST BE BASED IN THE UNITED STATES.
If you have one, we would love to see a link to your online portfolio or GitHub on your resume. If you do not, please include a few examples of maps (static or dynamic) or other geospatial applications that you have created or contributed to with your application.
Educational experience with geospatial analysis using GIS software such as QGIS or ArcGIS (ArcGIS Online is a plus โ Experience Builders, Story Maps, etc.)
Practice with geospatial programming in Python and/or Google Earth Engine
Familiarity and/or experience with geospatial data formats, projections, transformations, and structures
Ability to effectively communicate complex technical topics to a non-technical audience
The following experience/skills are not required but will be considered strong assets if a candidate possesses them:
Cloud development (AWS, Azure)
Full Stack Development
Education/curriculum development
Interest/experience in working in a multi-cultural and decentralized office environment
A strong desire to learn new skills and apply them
Comfort with ambiguity, and personally motivated
Creative thinking and solution-orientation
Mercy Corps interns represent the agency both during and outside of work hours and are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and Mercy Corps policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.