Community EWB-USA Newsletter
announcements    career resources    younger member news    conferences & Competitions



In the April/May issue:

Announcements

Renew your free membership - Update your contact info/profile

May Grads - Upgrade with ASCE and get the rest of 2009 Free

Graduates, congratulations on your upcoming achievement!  Get your career started on the right foot with free membership in ASCE through 2009. Upgrade today and you'll have access to job hunting and career tools, advice from ASCE mentors, and a network of ASCE Younger Members who have already been in your shoes.

>>Start the next chapter of your life with the advantage of ASCE.  Upgrade today!

Get started on the right career path - as an ASCE protege

Grads, take the first exciting steps of your career with someone who's been there before.  ASCE's eCareerMentoring program will match you with a mentor who shares your interests and time commitment. You can expect to:

  • explore career paths
  • build a valuable network of professional peers
  • get answers to questions you have, whether its about the profession or office etiquette

>>Visit the eMentoring Web site today for more information or contact eCareerMentor@asce.org with questions.

CI Student Days

ASCE’s Construction Institute (CI) has developed Student Days, a program specially designed to introduce civil engineering students to the wide variety of “real world” engineering opportunities after graduation – and let you experience some of those first-hand. CI works closely with ASCE local Sections and industry leaders to: bring students a program rich with interactive presentations on technical advancements in the field; provide you with job search “intel” as you network with corporate sponsors and recruiters; and get your feet dirty on an active project site.

Check out our sites for more information on our October Student Days events in New York and Texas. Invitations will come to your professors, so make sure you mention it to them.

>>See what students in San Francisco thought of their Student Days experience.

ASCE Student Chapters: Unified, Diversified!

ASCE Sections and Branches are engaging members in diversity and inclusion through a variety of activities, and student members are getting in on the act, too!

Does your Student Chapter conduct activities on diversity awareness and inclusion or partner with student chapters of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE), the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) or the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE)? If so, promoting campus activities is a great way to show what your chapter is doing and qualify it to win an award from ASCE’s Committee on Diversity and Women in Civil Engineering.

>>Tell us how your Student Chapter is addressing diversity awareness and inclusion! Or, if you’re just getting started and would like to host a diversity activity on your campus, ASCE will work with you to help engage your peers.

ASCE’s F.E. Exam Review Course - the Ultimate Preparation Tool for the F.E. Exam

The F.E. exam is tough. The best way to prepare for this day-long exam is to study the relevant materials and then Practice! Practice! Practice! ASCE's F.E. Refresher Course contains 12 modules, presented by a “virtual instructor” using interactive quizzes, audio, and animated slides. Listen and watch just as you would in the classroom. At the end of each section, test your skills. Time yourself on dynamically generated practice tests, which can be taken over and over again to sharpen test-taking skills right up to the exam. The practice tests are immediately scored so students can monitor their progress and measure their improvement. The course is available for a one-year subscription on both CD-Rom and Online.

>>Find more information or place your order.

ASCEville: What Do You Think?

ASCE has made it possible for you to engage kids in the world of civil engineering online at www.ASCEville.org, the place where civil engineering happens! Now we want to hear from you!

>>Tell us what you think about ASCEville.

Download the Latest Version of ASCE's Insights Podcast

What does it take to attract, maintain, and retain the best and brightest in the engineering profession?  Find out what challenges Jane Chmielinski, Executive Vice President and Chief Corporate Officer of AECOM faces in ASCE's newest Insights podcast. 

>>Hear her insight and come back each month over your summer break to download a new episode.

Get this month's digital issue of Civil Engineering magazine

The design and construction team building Citi Field, the new home of the New York Mets, had only 36 months in which to design and construct the ballpark--on extremely poor soils.  Check out this story plus how the City of Yucaipa, California controlled flooding by constructing a series of three detention basins along Oak Glen Creek.

>>You'll find these stories and more in this month's CE magazine.

Community

UMD Students Shed Light on African Community

While the majority of the University of Maryland's campus took refuge in fleece pants and warm dorms during this January's frigid temps, senior Ryan Payne was jetting off to the West African country of Burkina Faso.  Payne, accompanied by nine other students and two faculty members, wasn't going for a quick winter getaway.  Rather, Payne and his team were working with EWB-USA to bring electricity to more than 10,000 people in the small community of Dissin. 

>>Find out how Payne and his team implemented the project and what they learned from their experience.

>>Watch a video of the team's trip.

Career Resources

Engineer Your Future

Don’t lose your connection with Career Connections over the summer! Hundreds of employers search Career Connections everyday to find exceptional candidates. Don’t be left out!

  • Post your resume for free
  • Gain more exposure
  • Refine your job search
  • Find the best position for YOU

You never know when your next opportunity will pop up. Career Connections wants to make sure you’re ready!

Featured Internships

Younger Member News

Are You Ready for Summer?

By Doug Knapp, P.E., M.ASCE
Western Geographic Member – Committee on Younger Members
douglas.d.knapp@usace.army.mil

Summer is right around the corner, and there are probably a million things on your mind. Here are the top 10 questions asked by civil engineering students at the end of the year:

10. Are you ready for finals?
9. Do you have any AAA batteries for my calculator?
8. How am I supposed to pay attention in my afternoon class when it is so nice outside?
7. How many times do I have to hear that my friend only needs a ‘C’ on the final to get an ‘A’ in the class?
6. Is it bad that I hope my friend gets a ‘C-‘?
5. Is it more important to beat our rival school in the Concrete Canoe Competition, or to qualify for Nationals?
4. Instead of eating lunch in the engineering building, who wants to eat outside the Union Building?
3. Where are you living next year?
2. Do you have a job lined up for summer?
1. How am I going to stay active with ASCE during the summer?

Luckily for you, there is an answer to the number one question: your local ASCE Younger Member Group. Younger Members are ASCE members who are 35 years old and younger. Students and recent graduates are always encouraged to attend Younger Member activities. Younger Member Groups focus on networking, professional development, continuing education, outreach, and community service. Some popular events include: social activities, technical tours, and engineering competitions for K-12 students.

If you are just graduating, joining a Younger Member Group is an excellent way to make professional contacts, meet new people, get involved with your community, promote civil engineering, and have fun. See if your local Section or Branch has a Younger Member Group. If you are still not sure, feel free to contact

Loreen Bobo at asceymf@earthlink.net.

The Younger Member Groups around the country are assisted by the Committee on Younger Members (CYM), which is the national ASCE committee representing members age 35 and under.

 

Conferences & Competitions

New Student Social Events at the 2009 EWRI Congress

When: May 17-21, 2009

Where: Kansas City, MO

Details: Sign up for these fun events or contact Sara Fjell at sdfjell@yahoo.com.

Beyond technical experiences at this year's Congress, get out and enjoy the best of Kansas City.  Start with "A Night Out in Kansas City," then enjoy fine dining in Country Club Plaza, a premiere restaurant and shopping area; and follow that experience with jazz/funk music at The Levee. Then the Shark Bar, located in Kansas City's trendy Power and Light District, will host the Student and Younger Member Social on Tuesday.

Registration Discounted for Students at 14th Conference on Cold Regions Engineering

When: Aug. 30-Sept. 2, 2009

Where: Duluth, MN

Details: Register or find more information

Before you head off for summer vacation, make plans to cool down at the 14th Conference on Cold Regions engineering.  Attend sessions on Frost Action, Construction, Green Engineering, Structures, Climate Change, Infrastructure, Sewage Treatment Facilities, and Hydrology/Hydraulics. For a nominal additional fee, you can take advantage of tours to a hydroelectric plant, basalt quarry, a new civil engineering classroom, and Duluth landmarks such as the Aerial Lift Bridge.  Plus you'll attend the Awards Luncheon and network with civil engineers at the Ice Breaker Reception.

5th Congress on Forensic Engineering Student Paper Competition

When: Nov. 11-14, 2009

Where: Washington, D.C.

Details: Student paper topics and format

The 5th Congress on Forensic Engineering is sponsoring a Student Paper Competition open to all graduate and undergraduate engineering students. The top paper will receive a prize of $500, a plaque, and may be published in the ASCE Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities.

>> Papers are due on Aug. 14, 2009 to M. Kevin Parfitt at mkp@psu.edu.

 

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