Discussion Thread

After writing a Member Voice with internship advice, I was curious to hear from you all about your internship experiences.

Are there any internship experiences you found to be particularly useful or insightful?
Did your internship have an impact on the direction of your career?

I interned for two summers and two winter breaks for the civil group at Wallace Engineering in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I started there fulltime after graduation and am now working for them part time while getting my Masters abroad. I learned too many valuable things to list them all, but here are a few that come to mind:

• If you enjoy the people around you, it makes the workday more enjoyable. Be proactive about genuinely investing in those around you. (There's a Thursdays@3 on this topic)
• There is an art to client interactions, and each client relationship is unique.
• When asking questions, make sure you know the "why" behind the answer so you don't have to ask each time that situation arises if the answer is still the same. For example, don't ask "What kind of pipe do I use for this waterline?" Instead ask "How do I determine what type of water piping to use in different situations?"
• As much as you try to plan, there is always a chance of surprises in the field. Be prepared to react to those surprises and manage expectations of the owner/developer/architect. 
• No matter how great you think your design is, something will change that impacts it. Be prepared to do and then redo your designs without taking it personally.

------------------------------
Heidi C. Wallace, P.E., M.ASCE
Tulsa, OK
------------------------------

Hey Heidi, thank you for sharing your experiences. Your internship sounds great! I hope to hear more stories~ 

Mine is not as relevant to ASCE, but I'll share just to add to the momentum. Before I was an engineer, I had an internship for 2 months that led to a full time first job. I had to go through the interview process, but I was at least selected for an interview. The internship itself was a great way to understand culture and for the employer to offer you exposure without the commitment of hiring full-on. I enjoyed the experience and found it eye opening. But of course, it wasn't as huge of an exposure as my first job. 

Charles

------------------------------
Charles Ou-Yang S.M.ASCE
Yorba Linda CA
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 05-23-2021 12:14 PM
From: Heidi Wallace
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

After writing a Member Voice with internship advice, I was curious to hear from you all about your internship experiences.

Are there any internship experiences you found to be particularly useful or insightful?
Did your internship have an impact on the direction of your career?

I interned for two summers and two winter breaks for the civil group at Wallace Engineering in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I started there fulltime after graduation and am now working for them part time while getting my Masters abroad. I learned too many valuable things to list them all, but here are a few that come to mind:

• If you enjoy the people around you, it makes the workday more enjoyable. Be proactive about genuinely investing in those around you. (There's a Thursdays@3 on this topic)
• There is an art to client interactions, and each client relationship is unique.
• When asking questions, make sure you know the "why" behind the answer so you don't have to ask each time that situation arises if the answer is still the same. For example, don't ask "What kind of pipe do I use for this waterline?" Instead ask "How do I determine what type of water piping to use in different situations?"
• As much as you try to plan, there is always a chance of surprises in the field. Be prepared to react to those surprises and manage expectations of the owner/developer/architect. 
• No matter how great you think your design is, something will change that impacts it. Be prepared to do and then redo your designs without taking it personally.

------------------------------
Heidi C. Wallace, P.E., M.ASCE
Tulsa, OK
------------------------------

I completely agree that internships are a great way to get a feel for company culture without having to "quit" if you don't enjoy it. If you do enjoy it, now you have a better idea of the atmosphere before you apply for a full-time position after graduation.

------------------------------
Heidi C. Wallace, P.E., M.ASCE
Tulsa, OK
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 05-24-2021 07:19 PM
From: Charles Ou-Yang
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

Hey Heidi, thank you for sharing your experiences. Your internship sounds great! I hope to hear more stories~

Mine is not as relevant to ASCE, but I'll share just to add to the momentum. Before I was an engineer, I had an internship for 2 months that led to a full time first job. I had to go through the interview process, but I was at least selected for an interview. The internship itself was a great way to understand culture and for the employer to offer you exposure without the commitment of hiring full-on. I enjoyed the experience and found it eye opening. But of course, it wasn't as huge of an exposure as my first job.

Charles

------------------------------
Charles Ou-Yang S.M.ASCE
Yorba Linda CA

Original Message:
Sent: 05-23-2021 12:14 PM
From: Heidi Wallace
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

After writing a Member Voice with internship advice, I was curious to hear from you all about your internship experiences.

Are there any internship experiences you found to be particularly useful or insightful?
Did your internship have an impact on the direction of your career?

I interned for two summers and two winter breaks for the civil group at Wallace Engineering in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I started there fulltime after graduation and am now working for them part time while getting my Masters abroad. I learned too many valuable things to list them all, but here are a few that come to mind:

• If you enjoy the people around you, it makes the workday more enjoyable. Be proactive about genuinely investing in those around you. (There's a Thursdays@3 on this topic)
• There is an art to client interactions, and each client relationship is unique.
• When asking questions, make sure you know the "why" behind the answer so you don't have to ask each time that situation arises if the answer is still the same. For example, don't ask "What kind of pipe do I use for this waterline?" Instead ask "How do I determine what type of water piping to use in different situations?"
• As much as you try to plan, there is always a chance of surprises in the field. Be prepared to react to those surprises and manage expectations of the owner/developer/architect. 
• No matter how great you think your design is, something will change that impacts it. Be prepared to do and then redo your designs without taking it personally.

------------------------------
Heidi C. Wallace, P.E., M.ASCE
Tulsa, OK
------------------------------

I only had one internship myself, but it taught me many things and I am grateful for the experience. I was a geotechnical and concrete inspector at various construction sites across NJ and PA. I will try to list a few things that I found valuable. Many of them taught me the same things as those listed in Heidi's bullets above.

Being on-site all of the time really helped to show me how Civil Engineering is actually done.  From seeing concrete poured, rebar set, trench footings dug, and to seeing steel frames being put in place, there is no substitute for seeing a structure built in real life. I think every student should get more opportunities to understand all of the moving parts that go on at a job site, and gain an appreciation for the level of attention to detail and communication that is required on all levels to see a job done right.

The communication part can really not be overstated. I learned through trial and error that there are more and less effective ways to communicate with my manager and with contractors on job sites. For example, if my boss called me and asked "how are things on the job site today?" I eventually learned to answer with some level of description about what I was seeing that day, instead of saying "oh, things are good here." Once I started elaborating on my observations, my boss was able to question me in more detail about some task or another that was being performed to make sure that it was being done correctly. 

Overseeing soil compaction and asphalt compaction efforts, as well as making concrete cylinders for strength testing also helped me understand the purpose and reasons for the work in a much better way than simply reading about this processes in a lab manual or textbook.  I recall that I once forgot we had a quiz in my foundations class, and by luck, it happened to be on all the topics that I covered during my internship. 

Learning to read design drawings and understand where things on the plans were actually located on a job site was another valuable skill that I learned. Even though I now work in water resources, I was able to take this skill with me and apply it in future jobs. 

My internship also showed me that although I was learning a lot and found many aspects of the work to be exciting and rewarding, I wanted to try something new after graduating school that aligned with other skills and interest of mine (in this case, water resources). However I will always appreciate what I gained in my internship.

------------------------------
Christopher Seigel P.E., M.ASCE
Civil Engineer
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 05-23-2021 12:14 PM
From: Heidi Wallace
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

After writing a Member Voice with internship advice, I was curious to hear from you all about your internship experiences.

Are there any internship experiences you found to be particularly useful or insightful?
Did your internship have an impact on the direction of your career?

I interned for two summers and two winter breaks for the civil group at Wallace Engineering in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I started there fulltime after graduation and am now working for them part time while getting my Masters abroad. I learned too many valuable things to list them all, but here are a few that come to mind:

• If you enjoy the people around you, it makes the workday more enjoyable. Be proactive about genuinely investing in those around you. (There's a Thursdays@3 on this topic)
• There is an art to client interactions, and each client relationship is unique.
• When asking questions, make sure you know the "why" behind the answer so you don't have to ask each time that situation arises if the answer is still the same. For example, don't ask "What kind of pipe do I use for this waterline?" Instead ask "How do I determine what type of water piping to use in different situations?"
• As much as you try to plan, there is always a chance of surprises in the field. Be prepared to react to those surprises and manage expectations of the owner/developer/architect. 
• No matter how great you think your design is, something will change that impacts it. Be prepared to do and then redo your designs without taking it personally.

------------------------------
Heidi C. Wallace, P.E., M.ASCE
Tulsa, OK
------------------------------

Awesome feedback Christopher!
Specifically the technique in effective responses. 

Another question. I'm also one to be broadly curious. How do you see your 10 year career trajectory with a switch from Geotech to water? 

Charles


------------------------------
Charles Ou-Yang S.M.ASCE
Yorba Linda CA
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 05-27-2021 11:34 AM
From: Christopher Seigel
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

I only had one internship myself, but it taught me many things and I am grateful for the experience. I was a geotechnical and concrete inspector at various construction sites across NJ and PA. I will try to list a few things that I found valuable. Many of them taught me the same things as those listed in Heidi's bullets above.

Being on-site all of the time really helped to show me how Civil Engineering is actually done.  From seeing concrete poured, rebar set, trench footings dug, and to seeing steel frames being put in place, there is no substitute for seeing a structure built in real life. I think every student should get more opportunities to understand all of the moving parts that go on at a job site, and gain an appreciation for the level of attention to detail and communication that is required on all levels to see a job done right.

The communication part can really not be overstated. I learned through trial and error that there are more and less effective ways to communicate with my manager and with contractors on job sites. For example, if my boss called me and asked "how are things on the job site today?" I eventually learned to answer with some level of description about what I was seeing that day, instead of saying "oh, things are good here." Once I started elaborating on my observations, my boss was able to question me in more detail about some task or another that was being performed to make sure that it was being done correctly.

Overseeing soil compaction and asphalt compaction efforts, as well as making concrete cylinders for strength testing also helped me understand the purpose and reasons for the work in a much better way than simply reading about this processes in a lab manual or textbook.  I recall that I once forgot we had a quiz in my foundations class, and by luck, it happened to be on all the topics that I covered during my internship.

Learning to read design drawings and understand where things on the plans were actually located on a job site was another valuable skill that I learned. Even though I now work in water resources, I was able to take this skill with me and apply it in future jobs.

My internship also showed me that although I was learning a lot and found many aspects of the work to be exciting and rewarding, I wanted to try something new after graduating school that aligned with other skills and interest of mine (in this case, water resources). However I will always appreciate what I gained in my internship.

------------------------------
Christopher Seigel P.E., M.ASCE
Civil Engineer

Original Message:
Sent: 05-23-2021 12:14 PM
From: Heidi Wallace
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

After writing a Member Voice with internship advice, I was curious to hear from you all about your internship experiences.

Are there any internship experiences you found to be particularly useful or insightful?
Did your internship have an impact on the direction of your career?

I interned for two summers and two winter breaks for the civil group at Wallace Engineering in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I started there fulltime after graduation and am now working for them part time while getting my Masters abroad. I learned too many valuable things to list them all, but here are a few that come to mind:

• If you enjoy the people around you, it makes the workday more enjoyable. Be proactive about genuinely investing in those around you. (There's a Thursdays@3 on this topic)
• There is an art to client interactions, and each client relationship is unique.
• When asking questions, make sure you know the "why" behind the answer so you don't have to ask each time that situation arises if the answer is still the same. For example, don't ask "What kind of pipe do I use for this waterline?" Instead ask "How do I determine what type of water piping to use in different situations?"
• As much as you try to plan, there is always a chance of surprises in the field. Be prepared to react to those surprises and manage expectations of the owner/developer/architect. 
• No matter how great you think your design is, something will change that impacts it. Be prepared to do and then redo your designs without taking it personally.

------------------------------
Heidi C. Wallace, P.E., M.ASCE
Tulsa, OK
------------------------------

Given that my geotech experience was an internship, I don't really view moving into a different field after college as a career switch so much as learning more about the different aspects of the broad, broad field of "civil engineering" as a whole. I'm willing to believe that I would have liked and disliked aspects of any branch of civil engineering that I had been involved in.

Rather than view my career over the next 4 years (I'm currently 6 years into the world of water resources engineering) through the lens of the branch of civil engineering that I am involved in, I would prefer to continue to view my career trajectory more through the benchmarks of what kind of responsibilities I can take on, what kind of projects I can be involved in, and the quality of the people that I get to surround myself with.

I hope this answers your question.

I believe that Heidi and a few others recently posted a few topics on these concepts. You might be interested in reading the one called "People vs projects"

https://collaborate.asce.org/careerbydesign/communities/community-home/digestviewer/viewthread?MessageKey=a2859092-89c5-43fe-9f8a-567ea88b27a6&CommunityKey=78ae5b12-b515-4f9b-803f-739cb4239b86&tab=digestviewer#bma2859092-89c5-43fe-9f8a-567ea88b27a6

------------------------------
Christopher Seigel P.E., M.ASCE
Civil Engineer
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 05-27-2021 06:21 PM
From: Charles Ou-Yang
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

Awesome feedback Christopher!
Specifically the technique in effective responses.

Another question. I'm also one to be broadly curious. How do you see your 10 year career trajectory with a switch from Geotech to water?

Charles


------------------------------
Charles Ou-Yang S.M.ASCE
Yorba Linda CA

Original Message:
Sent: 05-27-2021 11:34 AM
From: Christopher Seigel
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

I only had one internship myself, but it taught me many things and I am grateful for the experience. I was a geotechnical and concrete inspector at various construction sites across NJ and PA. I will try to list a few things that I found valuable. Many of them taught me the same things as those listed in Heidi's bullets above.

Being on-site all of the time really helped to show me how Civil Engineering is actually done.  From seeing concrete poured, rebar set, trench footings dug, and to seeing steel frames being put in place, there is no substitute for seeing a structure built in real life. I think every student should get more opportunities to understand all of the moving parts that go on at a job site, and gain an appreciation for the level of attention to detail and communication that is required on all levels to see a job done right.

The communication part can really not be overstated. I learned through trial and error that there are more and less effective ways to communicate with my manager and with contractors on job sites. For example, if my boss called me and asked "how are things on the job site today?" I eventually learned to answer with some level of description about what I was seeing that day, instead of saying "oh, things are good here." Once I started elaborating on my observations, my boss was able to question me in more detail about some task or another that was being performed to make sure that it was being done correctly.

Overseeing soil compaction and asphalt compaction efforts, as well as making concrete cylinders for strength testing also helped me understand the purpose and reasons for the work in a much better way than simply reading about this processes in a lab manual or textbook.  I recall that I once forgot we had a quiz in my foundations class, and by luck, it happened to be on all the topics that I covered during my internship.

Learning to read design drawings and understand where things on the plans were actually located on a job site was another valuable skill that I learned. Even though I now work in water resources, I was able to take this skill with me and apply it in future jobs.

My internship also showed me that although I was learning a lot and found many aspects of the work to be exciting and rewarding, I wanted to try something new after graduating school that aligned with other skills and interest of mine (in this case, water resources). However I will always appreciate what I gained in my internship.

------------------------------
Christopher Seigel P.E., M.ASCE
Civil Engineer

Original Message:
Sent: 05-23-2021 12:14 PM
From: Heidi Wallace
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

After writing a Member Voice with internship advice, I was curious to hear from you all about your internship experiences.

Are there any internship experiences you found to be particularly useful or insightful?
Did your internship have an impact on the direction of your career?

I interned for two summers and two winter breaks for the civil group at Wallace Engineering in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I started there fulltime after graduation and am now working for them part time while getting my Masters abroad. I learned too many valuable things to list them all, but here are a few that come to mind:

• If you enjoy the people around you, it makes the workday more enjoyable. Be proactive about genuinely investing in those around you. (There's a Thursdays@3 on this topic)
• There is an art to client interactions, and each client relationship is unique.
• When asking questions, make sure you know the "why" behind the answer so you don't have to ask each time that situation arises if the answer is still the same. For example, don't ask "What kind of pipe do I use for this waterline?" Instead ask "How do I determine what type of water piping to use in different situations?"
• As much as you try to plan, there is always a chance of surprises in the field. Be prepared to react to those surprises and manage expectations of the owner/developer/architect. 
• No matter how great you think your design is, something will change that impacts it. Be prepared to do and then redo your designs without taking it personally.

------------------------------
Heidi C. Wallace, P.E., M.ASCE
Tulsa, OK
------------------------------

My most valuable internship was working as a construction inspector for PennDOT for one summer. I didn't know it at the time, but working on the design side now, I learned so much during that summer spent in the field that I would have no concept of otherwise. There were many specific aspects of highway and bridge construction that I got to witness, but more importantly was learning the concept to take into account how different things may actually be in the field when compared to what you are seeing in your design software on the computer screen. It's extremely important to think of how something can be constructed rather than just designing and moving on.

------------------------------
Dennis Wilson P.E., M.ASCE
Associate Project Manager, Transportation Engineering
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 05-23-2021 12:14 PM
From: Heidi Wallace
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

After writing a Member Voice with internship advice, I was curious to hear from you all about your internship experiences.

Are there any internship experiences you found to be particularly useful or insightful?
Did your internship have an impact on the direction of your career?

I interned for two summers and two winter breaks for the civil group at Wallace Engineering in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I started there fulltime after graduation and am now working for them part time while getting my Masters abroad. I learned too many valuable things to list them all, but here are a few that come to mind:

• If you enjoy the people around you, it makes the workday more enjoyable. Be proactive about genuinely investing in those around you. (There's a Thursdays@3 on this topic)
• There is an art to client interactions, and each client relationship is unique.
• When asking questions, make sure you know the "why" behind the answer so you don't have to ask each time that situation arises if the answer is still the same. For example, don't ask "What kind of pipe do I use for this waterline?" Instead ask "How do I determine what type of water piping to use in different situations?"
• As much as you try to plan, there is always a chance of surprises in the field. Be prepared to react to those surprises and manage expectations of the owner/developer/architect. 
• No matter how great you think your design is, something will change that impacts it. Be prepared to do and then redo your designs without taking it personally.

------------------------------
Heidi C. Wallace, P.E., M.ASCE
Tulsa, OK
------------------------------

I certainly wish I had a more thorough understanding of how some of what we design is constructed. I've mentioned to my mentors that I think it could be really cool to partner with a construction management firm and switch interns for a week so that our interns could get a better exposure to the field and the CPM interns could get a little better look at what goes into the plans they use in the field.

------------------------------
Heidi C. Wallace, P.E., M.ASCE
Tulsa, OK
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 06-11-2021 10:33 AM
From: Dennis Wilson
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

My most valuable internship was working as a construction inspector for PennDOT for one summer. I didn't know it at the time, but working on the design side now, I learned so much during that summer spent in the field that I would have no concept of otherwise. There were many specific aspects of highway and bridge construction that I got to witness, but more importantly was learning the concept to take into account how different things may actually be in the field when compared to what you are seeing in your design software on the computer screen. It's extremely important to think of how something can be constructed rather than just designing and moving on.

------------------------------
Dennis Wilson P.E., M.ASCE
Associate Project Manager, Transportation Engineering

Original Message:
Sent: 05-23-2021 12:14 PM
From: Heidi Wallace
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

After writing a Member Voice with internship advice, I was curious to hear from you all about your internship experiences.

Are there any internship experiences you found to be particularly useful or insightful?
Did your internship have an impact on the direction of your career?

I interned for two summers and two winter breaks for the civil group at Wallace Engineering in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I started there fulltime after graduation and am now working for them part time while getting my Masters abroad. I learned too many valuable things to list them all, but here are a few that come to mind:

• If you enjoy the people around you, it makes the workday more enjoyable. Be proactive about genuinely investing in those around you. (There's a Thursdays@3 on this topic)
• There is an art to client interactions, and each client relationship is unique.
• When asking questions, make sure you know the "why" behind the answer so you don't have to ask each time that situation arises if the answer is still the same. For example, don't ask "What kind of pipe do I use for this waterline?" Instead ask "How do I determine what type of water piping to use in different situations?"
• As much as you try to plan, there is always a chance of surprises in the field. Be prepared to react to those surprises and manage expectations of the owner/developer/architect. 
• No matter how great you think your design is, something will change that impacts it. Be prepared to do and then redo your designs without taking it personally.

------------------------------
Heidi C. Wallace, P.E., M.ASCE
Tulsa, OK
------------------------------

A requirement for my engineering undergraduate degree was to have internship experience. I think this was really helpful for students who didn't have a clear sense of what engineering discipline they wanted to take. It allowed some students to switch engineering disciplines while they hadn't completed their degree yet, and it also gave valuable experience doing actual engineering work in the real world, rather than just in a classroom. 

My internship was with a prestressed concrete firm who also did a lot of precast projects. It was great to see how an engineering company operated, and to be exposed to things that just aren't covered in college. Here are a few things that were really valuable to me:

• Use different engineering design software - This taught me early on that you need to know the capabilities and limitations of the software you are using. 
• Seeing how engineers are just a part of an engineering company - This showed me that doing some calculations was just a part of the project, and that there are a lot of non-engineers that work for engineering companies. Where I interned, there were engineers, drafters, HR personnel, managers, field crews, inspectors, accountants, project managers, and marketers that all worked together to complete a project. This opened my eyes to the fact that I was just one piece of the puzzle.
• Knowing who to ask for key information - In college, when you had a question, there was only one person to ask: your professor. During my internship, I found out that there were lots of people that had valuable information I needed to do design calculations. I couldn't just go ask my boss, I had to go different engineers, project managers, inspectors, drafters, and field crews different questions, to identify all the design parameters I needed for a project. This taught me that you don't always need to know everything, but you do need to know who does know the information you are looking for. 
• Working in a professional environment - While in college, most of the engineering students took our classes seriously and were professional, however, 30 seconds after class ended most students let their professional guards down and reverted back to being fun-loving college students. So working for an actual engineering company taught me that even on your breaks, that you still need to act in a professional matter. 
• Going to project sites - This showed me what my designs look like in the real world. I understood a lot more many of the design parameters I used in calculations by seeing what they were in the field. That's why this soil parameter was lower; that is why this column was longer than the one next to it; that's why this connection needed to be fully fixed, and the others didn't. 

I am happy to see that a few other people had similar experiences as well. I think internships are great way to take the knowledge that you learned from college and start applying them in real world situations, which can be a challenge for new engineers. I also think that seeing the whole project life cycle from start to finish emphasizes that there is a lot more than goes on in projects than just the "design".

------------------------------
Doug Cantrell P.E., M.ASCE
Professional Engineer
Durham NC
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 05-23-2021 12:14 PM
From: Heidi Wallace
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

After writing a Member Voice with internship advice, I was curious to hear from you all about your internship experiences.

Are there any internship experiences you found to be particularly useful or insightful?
Did your internship have an impact on the direction of your career?

I interned for two summers and two winter breaks for the civil group at Wallace Engineering in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I started there fulltime after graduation and am now working for them part time while getting my Masters abroad. I learned too many valuable things to list them all, but here are a few that come to mind:

• If you enjoy the people around you, it makes the workday more enjoyable. Be proactive about genuinely investing in those around you. (There's a Thursdays@3 on this topic)
• There is an art to client interactions, and each client relationship is unique.
• When asking questions, make sure you know the "why" behind the answer so you don't have to ask each time that situation arises if the answer is still the same. For example, don't ask "What kind of pipe do I use for this waterline?" Instead ask "How do I determine what type of water piping to use in different situations?"
• As much as you try to plan, there is always a chance of surprises in the field. Be prepared to react to those surprises and manage expectations of the owner/developer/architect. 
• No matter how great you think your design is, something will change that impacts it. Be prepared to do and then redo your designs without taking it personally.

------------------------------
Heidi C. Wallace, P.E., M.ASCE
Tulsa, OK
------------------------------

Hello Heidi!

Great question. I think that internships are super valuable. I do believe that at such a young age of the last years of high school or early college one is still too young to know exactly what your carrier should look like. An internship can help you narrow down your options and potentially avoid an undesirable career.

In my junior year, I interned at a construction site shadowing the resident engineer and construction crew. While the internship was only 5 weeks, it taught how much you can learn just by observing getting things done on the field. The first few years of my career have mostly all been in an office setting and I always look back to that internship where the knowledge gained in such a short period of time was so valuable. That is not to say that work in an office setting is worthless. It complements very well the field work by developing other type of skills like managing stakeholder relationships, leading meetings, learning design work, coordinating with other engineering disciplines, among others.

I definitely recommend to all engineering students to pursue an internship at some point during college. It does not matter if you are not 100% sure what you want your internship to be on. The important thing in my opinion, is to do something and see how that fits in with your personal/career goals.

Hope this is useful to everyone and let me know if you have anything to add or questions!
Regards,
Salvador

------------------------------
Salvador Bentolila P.E., ENV SP, M.ASCE
AECOM
New York NY
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 05-23-2021 12:14 PM
From: Heidi Wallace
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

After writing a Member Voice with internship advice, I was curious to hear from you all about your internship experiences.

Are there any internship experiences you found to be particularly useful or insightful?
Did your internship have an impact on the direction of your career?

I interned for two summers and two winter breaks for the civil group at Wallace Engineering in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I started there fulltime after graduation and am now working for them part time while getting my Masters abroad. I learned too many valuable things to list them all, but here are a few that come to mind:

• If you enjoy the people around you, it makes the workday more enjoyable. Be proactive about genuinely investing in those around you. (There's a Thursdays@3 on this topic)
• There is an art to client interactions, and each client relationship is unique.
• When asking questions, make sure you know the "why" behind the answer so you don't have to ask each time that situation arises if the answer is still the same. For example, don't ask "What kind of pipe do I use for this waterline?" Instead ask "How do I determine what type of water piping to use in different situations?"
• As much as you try to plan, there is always a chance of surprises in the field. Be prepared to react to those surprises and manage expectations of the owner/developer/architect. 
• No matter how great you think your design is, something will change that impacts it. Be prepared to do and then redo your designs without taking it personally.

------------------------------
Heidi C. Wallace, P.E., M.ASCE
Tulsa, OK
------------------------------

Internships:

1. Student Intern with Naval Facilities Engineering Command at Pearl Harbor Shipyard, HI
2. Civil/Structural Engineering Intern in Architecture and Facilities Engineering Dept with Disneyland Resort at Disneyland, CA
3. Campus Planning Intern with NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, OH
4. Project Engineering Intern with Hawaiian Dredging Construction Company in Honolulu, HI
5. Virtual Student Federal Service Intern with Urban Morphology Group for US Army Future Command (remote)
6. Project Engineering Intern in Area Development Dept with Walt Disney Imagineering in Glendale, CA

Things that I have learned:

• Going in, it was intimidating comparing myself to other interns and applicants with accolades, more experience, better grasp over subjects, and from prestigious schools. Instead of matching myself to that, I focused on being a team player and open to every learning opportunity possible. I used the few things that I had to offer.
• Internships are unique and somewhat isolated environments. The stakes are low and personal projects may allow for mobility to take it in which ever direction you want and as far as you want to go. It is an odd intersection between school and career, where you may simultaneously hold the least and most professional freedom of anyone else there.
• It is expected that you are the dumbest person in every room. It is a gift if you let it be one.
• Being an intern is akin to kind of like being a foreign exchange student. You are new to everyone, come from a different background, and may only be there for a short time. That draws people in. I am very much not an outgoing person, but it allows for easy and natural networking opportunities. 

------------------------------
Maxx Taga EIT
Student/Intern
Glendale CA
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 05-23-2021 12:14 PM
From: Heidi Wallace
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

After writing a Member Voice with internship advice, I was curious to hear from you all about your internship experiences.

Are there any internship experiences you found to be particularly useful or insightful?
Did your internship have an impact on the direction of your career?

I interned for two summers and two winter breaks for the civil group at Wallace Engineering in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I started there fulltime after graduation and am now working for them part time while getting my Masters abroad. I learned too many valuable things to list them all, but here are a few that come to mind:

• If you enjoy the people around you, it makes the workday more enjoyable. Be proactive about genuinely investing in those around you. (There's a Thursdays@3 on this topic)
• There is an art to client interactions, and each client relationship is unique.
• When asking questions, make sure you know the "why" behind the answer so you don't have to ask each time that situation arises if the answer is still the same. For example, don't ask "What kind of pipe do I use for this waterline?" Instead ask "How do I determine what type of water piping to use in different situations?"
• As much as you try to plan, there is always a chance of surprises in the field. Be prepared to react to those surprises and manage expectations of the owner/developer/architect. 
• No matter how great you think your design is, something will change that impacts it. Be prepared to do and then redo your designs without taking it personally.

------------------------------
Heidi C. Wallace, P.E., M.ASCE
Tulsa, OK
------------------------------

Those are really exciting internship opportunities. How did you have time for 6 of them? Most students I've met manage to do 3-4 at the most throughout their academic career.

------------------------------
Christopher Seigel P.E., M.ASCE
Civil Engineer
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 07-17-2021 09:49 PM
From: Maxx Taga
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

Internships:

1. Student Intern with Naval Facilities Engineering Command at Pearl Harbor Shipyard, HI
2. Civil/Structural Engineering Intern in Architecture and Facilities Engineering Dept with Disneyland Resort at Disneyland, CA
3. Campus Planning Intern with NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, OH
4. Project Engineering Intern with Hawaiian Dredging Construction Company in Honolulu, HI
5. Virtual Student Federal Service Intern with Urban Morphology Group for US Army Future Command (remote)
6. Project Engineering Intern in Area Development Dept with Walt Disney Imagineering in Glendale, CA

Things that I have learned:

• Going in, it was intimidating comparing myself to other interns and applicants with accolades, more experience, better grasp over subjects, and from prestigious schools. Instead of matching myself to that, I focused on being a team player and open to every learning opportunity possible. I used the few things that I had to offer.
• Internships are unique and somewhat isolated environments. The stakes are low and personal projects may allow for mobility to take it in which ever direction you want and as far as you want to go. It is an odd intersection between school and career, where you may simultaneously hold the least and most professional freedom of anyone else there.
• It is expected that you are the dumbest person in every room. It is a gift if you let it be one.
• Being an intern is akin to kind of like being a foreign exchange student. You are new to everyone, come from a different background, and may only be there for a short time. That draws people in. I am very much not an outgoing person, but it allows for easy and natural networking opportunities. 

------------------------------
Maxx Taga EIT
Student/Intern
Glendale CA

Original Message:
Sent: 05-23-2021 12:14 PM
From: Heidi Wallace
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

After writing a Member Voice with internship advice, I was curious to hear from you all about your internship experiences.

Are there any internship experiences you found to be particularly useful or insightful?
Did your internship have an impact on the direction of your career?

I interned for two summers and two winter breaks for the civil group at Wallace Engineering in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I started there fulltime after graduation and am now working for them part time while getting my Masters abroad. I learned too many valuable things to list them all, but here are a few that come to mind:

• If you enjoy the people around you, it makes the workday more enjoyable. Be proactive about genuinely investing in those around you. (There's a Thursdays@3 on this topic)
• There is an art to client interactions, and each client relationship is unique.
• When asking questions, make sure you know the "why" behind the answer so you don't have to ask each time that situation arises if the answer is still the same. For example, don't ask "What kind of pipe do I use for this waterline?" Instead ask "How do I determine what type of water piping to use in different situations?"
• As much as you try to plan, there is always a chance of surprises in the field. Be prepared to react to those surprises and manage expectations of the owner/developer/architect. 
• No matter how great you think your design is, something will change that impacts it. Be prepared to do and then redo your designs without taking it personally.

------------------------------
Heidi C. Wallace, P.E., M.ASCE
Tulsa, OK
------------------------------

The local firms were accommodating to my school schedule.
The Disneyland one, I took a semester and summer off. And the NASA one was during a summer. I was able to take online classes virtually during those times.
And then I did as much classes as I could the whole way through, so during my last semester I only had a few classes and was able to juggle two simultaneously.
The Imagineering one was post graduation.

------------------------------
Maxx Taga EIT
Student/Intern
Glendale CA
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 07-19-2021 09:51 AM
From: Christopher Seigel
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

Those are really exciting internship opportunities. How did you have time for 6 of them? Most students I've met manage to do 3-4 at the most throughout their academic career.

------------------------------
Christopher Seigel P.E., M.ASCE
Civil Engineer

Original Message:
Sent: 07-17-2021 09:49 PM
From: Maxx Taga
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

Internships:

1. Student Intern with Naval Facilities Engineering Command at Pearl Harbor Shipyard, HI
2. Civil/Structural Engineering Intern in Architecture and Facilities Engineering Dept with Disneyland Resort at Disneyland, CA
3. Campus Planning Intern with NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, OH
4. Project Engineering Intern with Hawaiian Dredging Construction Company in Honolulu, HI
5. Virtual Student Federal Service Intern with Urban Morphology Group for US Army Future Command (remote)
6. Project Engineering Intern in Area Development Dept with Walt Disney Imagineering in Glendale, CA

Things that I have learned:

• Going in, it was intimidating comparing myself to other interns and applicants with accolades, more experience, better grasp over subjects, and from prestigious schools. Instead of matching myself to that, I focused on being a team player and open to every learning opportunity possible. I used the few things that I had to offer.
• Internships are unique and somewhat isolated environments. The stakes are low and personal projects may allow for mobility to take it in which ever direction you want and as far as you want to go. It is an odd intersection between school and career, where you may simultaneously hold the least and most professional freedom of anyone else there.
• It is expected that you are the dumbest person in every room. It is a gift if you let it be one.
• Being an intern is akin to kind of like being a foreign exchange student. You are new to everyone, come from a different background, and may only be there for a short time. That draws people in. I am very much not an outgoing person, but it allows for easy and natural networking opportunities. 

------------------------------
Maxx Taga EIT
Student/Intern
Glendale CA

Original Message:
Sent: 05-23-2021 12:14 PM
From: Heidi Wallace
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

After writing a Member Voice with internship advice, I was curious to hear from you all about your internship experiences.

Are there any internship experiences you found to be particularly useful or insightful?
Did your internship have an impact on the direction of your career?

I interned for two summers and two winter breaks for the civil group at Wallace Engineering in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I started there fulltime after graduation and am now working for them part time while getting my Masters abroad. I learned too many valuable things to list them all, but here are a few that come to mind:

• If you enjoy the people around you, it makes the workday more enjoyable. Be proactive about genuinely investing in those around you. (There's a Thursdays@3 on this topic)
• There is an art to client interactions, and each client relationship is unique.
• When asking questions, make sure you know the "why" behind the answer so you don't have to ask each time that situation arises if the answer is still the same. For example, don't ask "What kind of pipe do I use for this waterline?" Instead ask "How do I determine what type of water piping to use in different situations?"
• As much as you try to plan, there is always a chance of surprises in the field. Be prepared to react to those surprises and manage expectations of the owner/developer/architect. 
• No matter how great you think your design is, something will change that impacts it. Be prepared to do and then redo your designs without taking it personally.

------------------------------
Heidi C. Wallace, P.E., M.ASCE
Tulsa, OK
------------------------------

Hello 
I am Aarish Khan and I was going through each experienced shared here. It was a great read, but suddenly a question just came to my mind that How to get an internship?
If someone can also talk about their journey of searching and finding their perfect internship, it would be so great for students like me.

------------------------------
Aarish Khan., S.M.ASCE
MASc Structural Engineering
University of Windsor, Canada.
------------------------------

------------------------------
Aarish Khan S.M.ASCE
Windsor ON
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 05-23-2021 12:14 PM
From: Heidi Wallace
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

After writing a Member Voice with internship advice, I was curious to hear from you all about your internship experiences.

Are there any internship experiences you found to be particularly useful or insightful?
Did your internship have an impact on the direction of your career?

I interned for two summers and two winter breaks for the civil group at Wallace Engineering in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I started there fulltime after graduation and am now working for them part time while getting my Masters abroad. I learned too many valuable things to list them all, but here are a few that come to mind:

• If you enjoy the people around you, it makes the workday more enjoyable. Be proactive about genuinely investing in those around you. (There's a Thursdays@3 on this topic)
• There is an art to client interactions, and each client relationship is unique.
• When asking questions, make sure you know the "why" behind the answer so you don't have to ask each time that situation arises if the answer is still the same. For example, don't ask "What kind of pipe do I use for this waterline?" Instead ask "How do I determine what type of water piping to use in different situations?"
• As much as you try to plan, there is always a chance of surprises in the field. Be prepared to react to those surprises and manage expectations of the owner/developer/architect. 
• No matter how great you think your design is, something will change that impacts it. Be prepared to do and then redo your designs without taking it personally.

------------------------------
Heidi C. Wallace, P.E., M.ASCE
Tulsa, OK
------------------------------

Great topic idea, Aarish!

I just started a thread on this topic and tagged you in it. You can view it here. 

------------------------------
Heidi C. Wallace, P.E., M.ASCE
Tulsa, OK
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 07-19-2021 05:27 PM
From: Aarish Khan
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

Hello
I am Aarish Khan and I was going through each experienced shared here. It was a great read, but suddenly a question just came to my mind that How to get an internship?
If someone can also talk about their journey of searching and finding their perfect internship, it would be so great for students like me.

------------------------------
Aarish Khan., S.M.ASCE
MASc Structural Engineering
University of Windsor, Canada.
------------------------------

------------------------------
Aarish Khan S.M.ASCE
Windsor ON

Original Message:
Sent: 05-23-2021 12:14 PM
From: Heidi Wallace
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

After writing a Member Voice with internship advice, I was curious to hear from you all about your internship experiences.

Are there any internship experiences you found to be particularly useful or insightful?
Did your internship have an impact on the direction of your career?

I interned for two summers and two winter breaks for the civil group at Wallace Engineering in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I started there fulltime after graduation and am now working for them part time while getting my Masters abroad. I learned too many valuable things to list them all, but here are a few that come to mind:

• If you enjoy the people around you, it makes the workday more enjoyable. Be proactive about genuinely investing in those around you. (There's a Thursdays@3 on this topic)
• There is an art to client interactions, and each client relationship is unique.
• When asking questions, make sure you know the "why" behind the answer so you don't have to ask each time that situation arises if the answer is still the same. For example, don't ask "What kind of pipe do I use for this waterline?" Instead ask "How do I determine what type of water piping to use in different situations?"
• As much as you try to plan, there is always a chance of surprises in the field. Be prepared to react to those surprises and manage expectations of the owner/developer/architect. 
• No matter how great you think your design is, something will change that impacts it. Be prepared to do and then redo your designs without taking it personally.

------------------------------
Heidi C. Wallace, P.E., M.ASCE
Tulsa, OK
------------------------------

I worked for a civil engineering firm for 3 summers and a contractor for 1 summer during college.  As a few others have mentioned, the practical, hands-on experience was priceless.  My first summer I worked on the survey crew.   I believe I would be a totally different engineer without that experience, and not just because I ended up marrying the survey crew chief.  While on survey crew I learned an important lesson about the appropriate level of accuracy.  In school, we kept all calculations to many decimal places.  Prior to that summer, I though engineering was super exact and black/white.  Through staking ground shots to a 0.1 accuracy, I learned what was practical, realistic, and even feasible.  I learned the phrase "good enough", which was not part of my vocabulary up to that point.  "Good enough" not from a sense that we slacked on the job, but from a sense that earth work is not rocket science (or other highly accurate field).  With further education and experience I expanded on "good enough" to learn when higher levels of accuracy are needed, but I also always bring the situation back to reality by asking can this be staked to this level of accuracy or can it be built to this level of accuracy.

------------------------------
Melanie Carlson A.M.ASCE
ENGINEER
City of Fairfield
Fairfield IA
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 05-23-2021 12:14 PM
From: Heidi Wallace
Subject: Your Most Valuable Internship Experience?

After writing a Member Voice with internship advice, I was curious to hear from you all about your internship experiences.

Are there any internship experiences you found to be particularly useful or insightful?
Did your internship have an impact on the direction of your career?

I interned for two summers and two winter breaks for the civil group at Wallace Engineering in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I started there fulltime after graduation and am now working for them part time while getting my Masters abroad. I learned too many valuable things to list them all, but here are a few that come to mind:

• If you enjoy the people around you, it makes the workday more enjoyable. Be proactive about genuinely investing in those around you. (There's a Thursdays@3 on this topic)
• There is an art to client interactions, and each client relationship is unique.
• When asking questions, make sure you know the "why" behind the answer so you don't have to ask each time that situation arises if the answer is still the same. For example, don't ask "What kind of pipe do I use for this waterline?" Instead ask "How do I determine what type of water piping to use in different situations?"
• As much as you try to plan, there is always a chance of surprises in the field. Be prepared to react to those surprises and manage expectations of the owner/developer/architect. 
• No matter how great you think your design is, something will change that impacts it. Be prepared to do and then redo your designs without taking it personally.

------------------------------
Heidi C. Wallace, P.E., M.ASCE
Tulsa, OK
------------------------------