what excites you most about this internship opportunity?
What excites me most is the opportunity to become an integral member of the team and dive deeper into specific projects.
why did you return to element?
I wanted to return to gain more experience. The Element Group is a company with a lot of space to spread your wings. During my first internship with Element, I was able to work on a multitude of projects, doing tasks such as developing close out packages, determining permitting timelines, and lining up General Contractors to bid.
what is your favorite part about interning with element?
The great sense of community within the firm, and the all-around welcoming atmosphere make everything less stressful even when workloads pile on.
what has been your best personal accomplishment since your previous element internship? this year?
There is no better feeling as a Construction Project Manager than being able to solve problems. The times when I was able to contribute an idea or work through an issue so that my colleagues didn’t have to, are always great learning experiences for me. During my last internship, I worked on a project which we were having trouble pushing through the finish line due to the teller pedestals and I managed to get a manufacturer who would deliver peds that would fit. During my Summer internship and now my ongoing Winter internship with The Element Group, I have been working closely with Troy on a project, calling branches to confirm component delivery, updating schedules, and mapping out logistics for the numerous customer locations.
what will you use from your last element internship to help you with your current element internship?
The knowledge I gained during my first internship has familiarized me with many of the ongoing projects at The Element Group. I hope to leverage this knowledge and experience to better assist my colleges in their project objectives.
what do you hope to accomplish during this internship?
I hope to reacquaint myself with people at The Element Group. I am also very excited to see how much progress has been made on the various projects. Most importantly, however, I want to truly help on the projects I have been assigned to.
what’s your favorite course that you’ve taken so far? have any courses related to or helped you with your internship experience?
I’ve taken many courses which have in some way, or another related to the work I do at my Element internship. “Construction Cost Estimating”, is a course I took recently while studying at Syracuse University. In this course, I learned various methods of calculating depreciation, determining acceptability of a project based on the minimum attractive rate of return (MARR), as well as calculating profit through consideration of time value.
Last year I took a course called “Plan Interpretation and Quantity Takeoff”. In this course I learned the basics of interpreting construction documents, conducting analysis and quantity take offs of those documents, and working with various programs such as Bluebeam.
what are your plans following graduation?
Graduation is far in the future, so I haven’t thought about it much. There are two readily obvious paths I could take. I could go into higher education by pursuing a Master’s or PHD, or I could jump right into the work force to gain some real-life experience out in the field. Whatever I decide, I will have The Element Group to thank for giving me great insight into the industry.
who is your role model?
My father has always been a huge role model for me. I have him to thank for where I am today.
do you have any hidden talents?
I don’t do it often, and when I do it’s mostly for school, but I really like reading and writing. I’m not a huge fan of how this subject is taught, but even still, I’ve had some great experiences in my English classes.
