For Project Engineer (PE) Intern Brenda Aguilar, it was never a question of “if” she would become an engineer—it was a question of when.

“I always knew I wanted to be an engineer because I love solving real-world problems,” she shares. “When the time came to choose my major, I decided on civil engineering so I could learn more about the engineering fields that interested me the most—environmental, construction, and structural. It’s exciting to know that as a future civil engineer, I’ll have the skills and knowledge needed to positively impact my community.”

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Community impact is an aspect of construction that particularly appeals to Brenda, as well as its uniquely tangible results and the hands-on, collaborative nature of the work. “I love that construction is a prominent part of society that fosters creation, growth, and prosperity,” she shares. “I also love that—like civil engineering—it’s so team-oriented and allows me to work with innovative, strategic-minded people.”

Brenda learned about Webcor and its summer internship program during an American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) info session at UC Berkeley, where she’s currently pursuing her civil engineering degree. She was immediately intrigued by the Webcor presenters’ palpable passion for the company and its mission, as well as its vast resume of high-profile projects in some of California’s largest cities. After taking in all of the presented information and insights on working for Webcor, she decided to take the chance and apply for her first-ever college internship.

Seven months later, she began her first day as a PE intern with Webcor Concrete at Olympic & Hill in Los Angeles. Throughout the summer, she’ll oversee how work gets done in the field, collaborate with her fellow interns and new Webcor colleagues, and learn how to run labor distribution report (LDR) meetings and perform PE-specific daily tasks.

“My goals are to learn all about the various construction-related tasks, build meaningful connections with my peers, and gain the skills necessary to pave my way to becoming an engineer,” Brenda says. “I’m especially excited to learn how to run a concrete pour!”

Although she’s only a couple weeks into her internship, she’s already learned how to set up and use the builder’s level with the layout crew and fallen in love with being out in the field, where she looks forward to soaking in as much knowledge and building as many skills as she can this summer.

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“The builder’s level is used to check elevations and set up level points,” she explains. “The level points allow the layout crew to keep the horizontal levels constant, which is crucial to ensuring the deck is built uniformly and free of any major dips or high points. Since learning to use this instrument, I’ve used it every day in the field—it’s been a huge help!”

She plans to spend any down time she gets this summer reading, going on runs, and catching up with her friends and family before returning to UC Berkeley for the fall semester. At Berkeley, she’s an active member of Cal Concrete Canoe, the university’s first civil engineering competition team. Together, team members model and build a 20-foot-long canoe composed entirely of concrete that they eventually race in the annual Mid-Pacific Regional Competition—in which Cal Concrete Canoe placed first this year!

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