Design Engineer

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources manages fish and wildlife programs, ensures the health of Iowa's forests and prairies, and provides recreational opportunities in Iowa's state parks. The Engineering Section is a group of design and construction professionals within the DNR that provide critical facility support and manages all construction projects that occur on DNR managed land.

The DNR is seeking a mid-level civil design engineer to join our team. As a design engineer, you will be responsible for designing a wide variety of civil construction projects from concept through construction, with duties that includes communicating with park managers and wildlife biologists, CAD drafting (experience in AutoCAD and/or Micro Station is required), research, developing cost estimates, and site visits. In this position, you will be exposed to a wide variety of construction projects that include roadway and transportation, wastewater treatment, drinking water treatment and distribution, boating facilities, wildlife habitat improvement, and water resources.

The Department of Natural Resources encourages all applicants to upload a current resume and cover letter to their online application.

Essential Functions

Apply knowledge of the principles and practices of building engineering and of state building codes, rules and regulations to everyday work.

Prepare complete engineering plans and specifications for a variety of building facilities; estimating and scheduling using computers and specialized software.

Communicate effectively verbally and in writing with DNR staff, management personnel, and other state and federal agencies.

Read, interpret, and accurately obtain necessary information from engineering related source documents/data to document proposals, search for precedents, and seek out alternative procedures for engineering problems or projects.

Work independently with consistent results and minimal supervision; develop and foster teamwork, and plan and participate in the work of subordinate professional and technical assistants in the development of plans and specifications.

Provide inspection and construction observation of capital projects; coordinate contractor relations, change orders and payment requests.

Travel across the state as required.

Have a customer service focus.

Display high standards of ethical conduct.

Critical Job Competencies

Accountability, Integrity, High Productivity, Communication Skills, Team Player, Interpersonal Skills, Customer Focus, Self-Management, Computer Skills, Technical Skills (project management and design).

What You Get From Us:

• A competitive pay plan and rewarding work.

• Insurance benefits that start the first of the month following 30 days of employment.

 (Premiums can start as low as $61/month for single and $205/month for family coverage).

• Separate vacation and sick leave accruals that start on the first day and can roll over annually.

• Nine paid holidays/year.

• Iowa Public Employee Retirement System (IPERS) retirement package with employer match.

• Optional deferred compensation (457/401A) plan with employer match.

• Professional training opportunities.

• Flexible schedules and opportunities for hybrid telework (as approved by supervisor).

• Family friendly and professional work environment.

• Employee Discount Programs (vision, cellular, fitness, recreation, season passes, travel, counseling)

• The State's total compensation package features benefits that are worth about 30% of your total compensation. For a list of additional benefits, please visit the DAS website for more information.

Comments:This position will be based out of the DNR Central Office in Des Moines, IA, with hybrid telework office options.

An Engineer Intern (EI) certificate or Professional Engineering License is not required for this position.

The starting salary for new state (Executive Branch) employees is expected to be at the base of the pay range. Additional salary increases may occur after the first six months, and then annually (if applicable). The State's total compensation package features an outstanding set of employee benefits that are worth about 30% of your total compensation. Visit the DAS website for more benefit information.

For more information about DNR Employment Opportunities and position specific notices, please visit the DNR Employment website.

The State of Iowa is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. 

Iowa DNR Mission

To conserve and enhance our natural resources in cooperation with individuals and organizations to improve the quality of life in Iowa and ensure a legacy for future generations.Graduation from an accredited college or university with a Bachelor's Degree in Architecture, or Civil, Mechanical, Architectural, Construction, Fire Protection or a related engineering field andfour years of full-time professional experience in the design and construction of buildings, utilities, earthwork, or related facilities and structures; and/or work with building codes, fire codes and handicapped accessibility regulations, direct involvement in the preparation of architectural or building engineering construction documents or in the review of such documents for conformance with applicable portions of these codes and regulations;

OR

an equivalent combination of experience and education substituting one year of the required full time professional experience for each year (30 semester hours) of the required education to a maximum of four years;

OR

possession of a valid Professional Engineer license recognized by the Iowa Board of Engineering Examiners and two years of the above described professional experience;

OR

possession of a certificate of registration as a Professional Architect recognized by the Iowa Board of Architectural Examiners and two years of the above described professional experience.

For additional information, please click on this link to view the job description.