A Reflection on My First Internship Experience

Hi, my name is Terry Lau, and I am currently entering my senior year as a Civil Engineering Student at Stony Brook University. A brief background about me is that I am a young engineer who has always admired the process of constructing activities and I thoroughly enjoy observing projects start from the ground up. During this past summer, I achieved my first ever civil engineering internship.

My journey to finding my first civil engineering internship was full of unpredictability but in the end, it worked out for me. Prior to accepting my very first engineering internship, I had limited hands-on experiences pertaining to the engineering sector. I had a broad, yet comprehensive understanding of civil engineering in terms of books, however, I understood that there was a tremendous difference between the material learned in a classroom and the knowledge obtained from an in-field experience.

I applied to a total amount of (50) positions, about (1/3) gave me a response, and only (2) proceeded to interviews. None of which pursued me as the final candidate. On the other hand, I was an active member of the ASCE branch at Stony Brook University where I co-existed with many like-minded peers. This is where I met our practitioner advisor who took me in as part of his up-and-coming engineering/consulting team as an Assistant Engineer.

I prepared myself for a lot of confusion as this would be the first engineering internship that I would be a part of. I found myself, however, comfortable enough to ask my team-members questions and they would gladly answer. This leads me to believe that a favorable workplace stems from the comfortability to ask for help and be yourself. Being in an environment of licensed and highly experienced engineers can provide enormous amounts of wisdom, tips, and lessons that can’t be achieved in an enclosed classroom.

I gained a vast amount of technical and professional knowledge during my first internship. I would consider the in-field practice of carrying out a QA/QC process, in a design-build project, has introduced me to a key component in any engineering project. I learned quickly about the abundance of documents to streamline and compose. I became accustomed to formulating daily inspection reports, material inspection reports (MIR), and quality work reports (QWR). Given the frequency of concrete pours, I learned a lot about the construction side of concrete. For instance, there is an ACI code that states that concrete should be fully poured within 90-minutes of the dispatch time. I also learned about the importance of cold joints and how it is detrimental to the integrity of the structure. There were many instances and lessons like this that I would have missed in the fine print inside of a textbook. I am extremely glad that I had this opportunity to grow as a pupil of civil engineering.

Surprisingly, upon entering this internship, I expected constant tension and stress within the construction site. Although there were situations where the laborers were a little stressed, overall, it was a strict yet respectful environment. Everyone treated each other with respect, and no one saw themselves higher than the next person. From the very first day, I felt welcomed, respected, and appreciated.

I consider myself late in the internship industry; I often heard that a junior year student should have at least (2) prior internships. To all the young engineering students out there, it is never too late, and I strongly recommend you guys stay consistent and never give up. I would also like to say that networking is as important as professionals make it out to be. Put yourself out there, join ASCE, attend networking events. There are plenty of ways to meet like-minded peers. You may not like everyone you meet, but there will be a group of people you will enjoy being with, professionally and casually. It is extremely important to remain humble. It shouldn’t matter that you have an engineering degree that someone might not have. All parties involved are hard workers and are a key component to the overall success of the project.

All in all, I could not have asked for a better first-internship. I am extremely appreciative of Quadrant Engineering P.C. for making me a part of their team and providing me with the right culture and tools to assist me in becoming a civil engineer. I believe that all engineering internships, from any company, can provide valuable knowledge and skills that are hard to come by in universities.