Over the Summer I interned at Swinerton Construction, one of the largest general contractors in the country. My position was officially titled “Intern Project Engineer.” At Swinerton, there is an intern rotation where you spend six weeks on a construction site and six weeks in the Downtown LA office. Having this type of experience was extremely beneficial. I was able to explore two sides of the industry and figure out which one appealed to me the most. On the construction site, my tasks included: verifying the correct materials were delivered on site, being in communication with the architects regarding design specifications, and doing quality control on the actual construction. In the office, I joined the estimating team where I was able to take measurements of future projects, put unit prices to them, and approximate how much that project would cost. The most rewarding part of this experience was that the work I was doing yielded real results. They weren’t exercises that no one would see but instead were tasks others needed me to complete for the project to continue.
I was able to find this internship position through an organization on campus called USC Construction Management Association of America. This club organizes monthly information sessions with companies in LA where their employees come to present to students and even take resumes right then. Through networking and experience in competing in a construction competition, I was able to land a position at Swinerton. I highly recommend getting involved in student organizations as early as possible to create these helpful and hopefully lasting connections!
