Forestry Intern

Salary: Depends on Qualifications
Location : Houston, TX
Job Type: Internship
Job Number: 16283
Department: Flood Control District
Opening Date: 02/13/2026
Closing Date: 3/12/2026 11:59 PM Central
Max Number of Applicants: 200

Position Description
About Harris County Flood Control District:
The Flood Control District has the mission to reduce the risk of flooding in Harris County, the third most populated county in the United States, with a population in excess of 4.7 million, including the City of Houston, the nation's fourth largest city. The Flood Control District has jurisdiction over the primary stormwater facilities in the county, which consist of approximately 1,500 channels totaling nearly 2,500 miles in length, as well as more than 60 regional stormwater detention basins, totaling more than 10,000 acres and several wetlands mitigation banks including Greens bayou.
What you will do at Harris County Flood Control District:

The Harris County Flood Control District (District) is seeking interns to join our Vegetation Management team who will work closely with the Department's staff forester in connection with the District's tree inventory/assessment program.

This 12-week paid internship program will provide candidates with an exciting opportunity to learn real-world experience and gain clarity on their ideal career path. Working with our organization will also offer the opportunity to contribute to various community development initiatives.
Essential Functions & Duties:

• Travel to project locations throughout Harris County.
• Collect tree data on newly planted sites, such as species and dbh. height, general condition, and other pertinent information.
• Transfer field-collected data to the tree database and produce reports based on that data.
• Assist the department's staff forester in the identification of desirable species to be saved during selective clearing operations.
• Assist with department projects, as needed.
• Attend department and division meetings.
• Assume additional responsibilities as required, adapting to the evolving demands, responsibilities, needs, and objectives of the District.

Harris County is an Equal Opportunity Employer
https://hrrm.harriscountytx.gov/Pages/EqualEmploymentOpportunityPlan.aspx
If you need special services or accommodations, please call (713) 274-5445 or email ADACoordinator@bmd.hctx.net.

This position is subject to a criminal history check. Only relevant convictions will be considered and, even when considered, may not automatically disqualify the candidate.
Requirements
Education:

• A minimum of two years of college-level Forestry, Botany, or Horticulture with strong emphasis on tree and plant identification.

Licensure:

• Valid Class "C" Texas Driver's License.

Knowledge Skills, and Abilities:

• Must be able to identify common tree species of Southeast Texas and have a general understanding of the silvical characteristics of those species.
• Must be able to read and comprehend written material such as safety cautions/warnings, maps, traffic signs, operating instructions, and work procedures.
• Strong skills using Microsoft Office applications (Outlook, Word, PowerPoint, Excel).
• Work independently with limited supervision, relative autonomy, and general review.
• Be a self-starter; assume ownership in completing assigned tasks.
• Work well under pressure, adhering to tight deadlines and accuracy/quality standards.
• Work well in an outdoor environment.
• Utilize good time management skills and effectively prioritize and schedule multiple tasks/initiatives.
• Effectively communicate with coworkers, the public, the industry, and/or governmental representatives.
• Solve mathematical problems that may be required in normal work situations.

NOTE: Qualifying education, experience, knowledge, and skills must be documented on your job application. You may attach a resume to the application as supporting documentation but ONLY information stated on the application will be used for consideration. "See Resume" will not be accepted for qualifications.
Preferences
Experience:

• Experience using a field GPS data collection unit. (preferred)

General Information
Position Type:

• Regular Full-Time / Summer Internship

Hours:

• 40 hours per week

Location:

• Facilities Maintenance | 7522 Prairie Oak Drive Houston, TX 77086

Salary:

• To be discussed at the interview

Physical Demands & Environmental Exposure:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions:

• Frequent stooping, bending, reaching, lifting, and carrying of items up to 11 pounds and occasional lifting of up to 20 pounds.
• Frequent driving of a vehicle with automatic controls and four-wheel drive.
• Occasional walking up and down steep slopes of ditches or on rough and uneven surfaces or ground such as sloping terrains, plowed or furrowed areas, or construction sites.
• Approximately 85% of duties are performed outdoors, where there will be routine exposure to significant levels of heat, cold, moisture, air pollution, wind and dust, wildlife, and flying/walking insects.
• When at field locations, may be exposed to vibration and/or noise more than 85 decibels.
• Approximately 15% of duties are performed indoors in a normal office environment with acceptable lighting, temperature, air conditioning, and noise levels.

Employment may be contingent on passing a drug screen and meeting other standards.

Due to a high volume of applications positions may close prior to the advertised closing date or at the discretion of the Hiring Department.
Not Applicable
01

Which of the following best describes your highest level of education completed as it relates to this position?Qualifying information must be documented in the Education section of your application.

• High School or GED diploma
• Associate Degree
• Bachelor's Degree
• Master's Degree or higher
• None of the above

02

If you selected a college degree in response to the previous question, which of the following best describes your major?

• Forestry
• Botany
• Horticulture with strong emphasis on tree and plant identification
• Other Related Field
• Unrelated Field
• N/A; No Degree

03

Do you have a minimum of two years of college-level Forestry, Botany, or Horticulture with strong emphasis on tree and plant identification?

• Yes
• I do not have this college-level education.

04

Do you have experience using a field GPS data collection unit?

• Yes
• No

05

If you selected 'Yes' for the previous question, please describe your experience using a field GPS data collection unit.If you do not have this experience, please type 'N/A' in the field.
06

Which of the following describes your level of proficiency using a personal computer and common office software such as MS Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook). Please select your level of proficiency based on the following descriptions:Advanced:A person with this level of skills is able to produce very large, complex formal documents that require a table of contents, footnotes, endnotes, bookmarks, and other special elements; a wide range of graphic effects, and use advanced techniques for analyzing and manipulating data. Has full mastery of Macro commands and skills to tie the objects together into a cohesive system by using Macros and Visual Basic for Applications code. Makes interactive presentations by using hyperlinks and action buttons.Intermediate:A person with this level of skills is able to customize toolbars, import and insert graphs, embed Excel data, and elaborate reports. Understands the concepts of databases and is able to work with charts and to use the list management capabilities of Excel. Able to use complex query techniques, create efficient forms and reports, and create Macros to automate these forms. Makes interactive presentations by using hyperlinks and action buttons.Basic:A person with this level of skills is able to use basic formatting, editing, printing functions, and understands the document page setup. Has the ability to enter and correct data, modify a workbook, format a worksheet, and use printing functions. Understands the different database concepts and structures and is familiar with data validation and is able to create a simple presentation in PowerPoint, run it, and print it.Entry Level:A person with this level of skills has the ability to open, create, save and modify documents in Word, send and receive email in Outlook and create spreadsheets in Excel. Format documents for printing, comfortable using the printer menu to preview documents. Has ability to change the font, the margins, insert or delete pages and use the built-in spellchecker and grammar check.

• Advanced
• Intermediate
• Basic
• Entry Level
• Not proficient

07

This role requires a Valid Driver's License (Texas upon hire)Do you have a Valid Driver's License?

• Yes, I have a Valid Texas Driver's License
• Yes, I have a Valid Driver's License but understand I must obtain a Valid Texas Driver's License prior to start date
• No, I'm not interested

Required Question