AEC Internship Partnership Key Takeaways

This year, our two returning interns participated in the 2020 AEC Internship Partnership. Organized by BHC Rhodes, it was created to offer participants exposure to the project life cycle, partner relationships, and disciplines outside of their course of study. Our firm worked with the City of Blue Springs, Missouri; Hollis + Miller Architects; and Kissick Construction to provide programming and host educational events.

In today’s post, we asked our interns, Conner Jackson and Jason Eskina, about their experience with the program. Here’s what they had to say:

What did you learn from the AEC internship program?
Conner Jackson: The biggest take away I had from this program was learning the process of how a project gets picked, designed, and made. I have now seen all the hands a project gets passed through before anyone breaks ground on a site. This can include the city/owner, designers, contractors, subs, and consultants. It was also interesting to hear from Kissick Construction how different the process was when working for a private company or owner rather than a city.

Jason Eskina: I was able to learn about the work done in our industry and how architects, engineers, and construction companies all overlap and communicate throughout a project.

How was it beneficial?
Conner: I think it will be very beneficial in my future career when I will be dealing with these other entities to understand exactly what they do and more importantly, what they will require from me to better help them and the project.

Jason: It was beneficial to see and learn about each stage a project goes through – from the owners to the design and then, to the construction of the project.

What was your favorite experience?
Conner: My favorite experience was meeting other interns my age with these companies that I may being seeing at various points throughout my career. I have already ran into one of them in the field on a project both of our companies are involved in.

Jason: My favorite experience was the Kissick Construction meeting. I liked being able to listen and learn about the construction side of projects and then, go out to one of their job sites to visually see the process.

Share a key takeaway from the program.
Conner: As I have learned from my time at Affinis and now again through this program, good relationships and connections between companies and people are essential to get a project done correctly and on time. I am glad to have made some myself through this program.

Jason: My key takeaway from this program would have to be how much emphasis was on creating and maintaining relationships built throughout the process of a project.