GWU Scholar Interns with Transit Authority

This past summer, Jack Palaian, a senior at The George Washington University (GW), served as a Mechanical Engineering intern for the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) in the office of Vehicle Program Services (CENV). During this 12-week program, Jack joined the CENV team as they diligently worked to maintain and update fleets that serve over half the metro area population.

“I feel included and can see my direct impact.”

The Metro transit system has been operating for 47 years and currently serves 98 stations across 128 miles of track. Like many students at GW, lack of access to a car makes the Metro critically important.

“It’s most rewarding to see firsthand and be a part of the team that is responsible for maintaining the transit system that is vital to my and other GW students collegiate experience,” says Jack.

Through his internship, Jack has been able to work on a multitude of projects, such as the reintroduction of Automatic Train Control (ATC) to Metro’s fleets. This effort is expected to make the trains more reliable and help reduce transit users’ wait time.

“I haven’t stopped smiling since joining the WMATA team,” says Jack. “I feel included and can see my direct impact.”