Structural Engineering Industrial Placements for U.S. Students
November 6, 2009 6:05 PM Subscribe
What are my chances of getting an industrial placement internship in the UK?
I'm a US citizen attending a US university majoring in structural engineering. Unfortunately, my program does not offer a lot of practical experience (no co-ops) or any guidance in securing internships (our career fair was a total bust this year with only two construction companies attending). While I've been scouring the internet in search of internships for the coming summer, I've seen several UK based firms that do industrial placements for a year. The descriptions are exactly what I'm looking for: basically taking a gap year to gain practical experience in structural design. However, most have connections to UK universities; I was already turned down by one company within a week of applying, for what I'm pretty sure was the fact that my home address is not in the UK. Do these companies (like ARUP and Laing O'Rourke) ever hire students from the US? Should I bother spending time on applying?
Other background information:
I'm currently a junior, so I would want to start either summer 2010 or earlier.
I have a fairly solid resume and GPA; I spent the last two summers doing research in civil engineering, as I was not experienced enough to have a design internship.
I've basically completed the design courses at my school. The CEE program is very small, about 20 people per year, so juniors and sophomores take the same classes alternating every year. I've done concrete and steel design, steel building design, and structural health monitoring.
Any personal experience, anecdotes, or advice would be much appreciated!
I'm a US citizen attending a US university majoring in structural engineering. Unfortunately, my program does not offer a lot of practical experience (no co-ops) or any guidance in securing internships (our career fair was a total bust this year with only two construction companies attending). While I've been scouring the internet in search of internships for the coming summer, I've seen several UK based firms that do industrial placements for a year. The descriptions are exactly what I'm looking for: basically taking a gap year to gain practical experience in structural design. However, most have connections to UK universities; I was already turned down by one company within a week of applying, for what I'm pretty sure was the fact that my home address is not in the UK. Do these companies (like ARUP and Laing O'Rourke) ever hire students from the US? Should I bother spending time on applying?
Other background information:
I'm currently a junior, so I would want to start either summer 2010 or earlier.
I have a fairly solid resume and GPA; I spent the last two summers doing research in civil engineering, as I was not experienced enough to have a design internship.
I've basically completed the design courses at my school. The CEE program is very small, about 20 people per year, so juniors and sophomores take the same classes alternating every year. I've done concrete and steel design, steel building design, and structural health monitoring.
Any personal experience, anecdotes, or advice would be much appreciated!
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Competition for places will be very high, and being from outside of the EU adds a lot of potential paperwork for any employer - why should they go to that extra effort when they can get a British/EU student for no additional effort?
I don't know about your visa situation, but in this case I'd be looking at:
- Does your (home) university have any pairings or partnerships with a UK university who could help you get your foot in the door?
- Is all of your paperwork in order to be allowed to work in the UK? Can you get this sorted ahead of time in order to present yourself to potential employers such that you're no more difficult to employ than a native?
I'd also bear in mind that there are various non-construction companies who could make use of a Structural Engineer - Aero and other Transport (Auto, truck, train) manufacturing companies, architects, etc. A year's experience as an aero structural engineer would be worth more to a post-graduation employer than no experience at all.
Good luck!
posted by Nice Guy Mike at 7:47 AM on November 7, 2009