Isaac Hansen, a UWA Engineering Science student on a direct pathway to a Master of Engineering, is a nominee in the McCusker Centre for Citizenship’s Outstanding Intern Award, for his internship supporting the Department of Transport Maritime Business Unit.
Contributing 100 hours to his project, Isaac quickly built an understanding of the agency’s purpose and activities, met internal stakeholders, and facilitated discussions around website improvements.
“The work of the Department of Transport benefits the WA marine industry delivering coastal infrastructure projects, facility management, coastal information and safety and compliance services to the 100,000 recreational boat owners throughout the State,” Isaac said.
“By collaborating on the improvement of the website and incorporating potential AI-driven enhancements, the user experience for individuals seeking maritime information and services will be greatly improved.
“Employing website data analysis, I contributed to the process of feature prioritisation; I developed Python-based prototypes* for jetty fee calculators and provided support in conducting pump calculations for the engineering team.
“Towards the end of my internship, I delivered a comprehensive presentation to the involved stakeholders, showcasing the outcomes of my efforts.”
Naila Luis, Senior Project Officer with the Department of Transport and internship supervisor, said that Isaac’s work had allowed the team to prioritise website innovations with the broader community in mind.
“Isaac’s contribution has allowed us to have some ‘out of the box’ discussions, bringing technological barrier discussions to the front of our conversations.
“Isaac participated in team building events, collaborated with a variety of people and adapted his project based on the needs of his stakeholders - it was a pleasure to host him.”
Isaac said he applied for the McCusker Centre for Citizenship Internship Program for its unique focus on roles that benefit the community.
“The McCusker Centre for Citizenship program was a great platform for personal and professional development, as well as being an eye-opener that helped me gain a deeper understanding of real-world issues unparalleled in other units in my studies.”
* Python is a computer programming language
Image: Isaac with Nigel, Maritime Project Engineer, Department of Transport Maritime