Project Engineer

Job Description

Posted Monday, August 11, 2025 at 6:00 AM

Water Mission is a Christian engineering nonprofit that builds safe water solutions for people in developing countries, refugee camps, and disaster areas. Since 2001, Water Mission has served more than 8 million people in 60 countries, sharing safe water and the message of God’s love. Working at Water Mission is as much a calling as it is a career, and we are searching for people with the courage, passion, and drive to help us change the world. Read more about our Statement of Faith and Our Christian Mission.

What is the opportunity?

The Project Engineer, Disaster Response applies technical expertise to the design, implementation, and evaluation of emergency Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) systems in disaster-affected contexts. This role is responsible for ensuring engineering excellence in response efforts, advancing innovative water solutions through research and field testing, supporting the technical readiness of deployment teams, and strengthening systems that enable timely, effective, and context-appropriate program delivery. This role is based in Charleston, SC, and reports to the Disaster Response Senior Engineer. Travel to disaster-affected areas is required. Candidate needs to be prepared to travel at least six months out of the year (i.e., multiple trips during a calendar year for a total of six months) and may be required with minimal notice.

A successful Project Engineer will:

General

Maintain a strong Christian witness and model servant leadership to colleagues, partners, the communities we serve, and the public.
Engage and participate in prayer before and after team meetings.
Lead and participate in biblically based staff devotions.

Response

Deploy as the lead WASH Engineer on disaster responses and guide the implementation of safe water systems and other WASH activities in humanitarian emergencies, including assessments, design, procurement, installation, and commissioning.
Serve as the Engineering Focal Point on the Incident Command Team when the Senior Engineer is deployed or unavailable.

Innovation

In coordination with the Engineering department, drive engineering initiatives for safe water and sanitation projects in disaster response contexts.
Advance the design of new technologies and concepts for the continual improvement of the disaster response technical capacity.

Preparedness

Assist in developing and delivering technical WASH curriculum and training for the DART roster.
Ensure readiness of prepositioned emergency water treatment and testing equipment and support the rapid deployment of equipment as needed during a response.

Coordination

Liaise with supply chain, programs, and engineering departments in the development of disaster response initiatives.
Participate in planning and after-action reviews following each response.
Support other engineering activities as needed at headquarters, in field offices, and in unknown remote locations.

What is required?

Personal and growing relationship with Jesus Christ.
Alignment with Water Mission’s Statement of Faith and core values of Love, Excellence, and Integrity.
Bachelor’s degree in Engineering – Civil, Electrical, Environmental (Chemical, Mechanical, and other Engineering degrees considered); preference will be given to candidates with electrical (specifically solar) or structural disciplines for the current opening
5+ years of engineering experience, with a minimum of 2 years in project management and managing teams.
Knowledgeable skills with office computer programs (Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook) and engineering programs such as AutoCAD, EPANET, Microsoft Project, etc.
Field-based experience in international humanitarian contexts is required.
Ability and willingness to work in very difficult disaster response situations with limited resources.
Thrives under pressure and has a proven track record of meeting deadlines.
Excellent analytical skills
Excellent verbal and written communication skills
Excellent relationship skills
Foreign language skills (preferred)
Home internet bandwidth is strong enough to support video conferencing and other job-related responsibilities.
Legal authorization to work in the United States without sponsorship.