An Iowa State education help put John on solid ground for his future aspirations. A 2007 civil engineering graduate, John decided to continue his education at Iowa State by enrolling in the geotechnical engineering master’s program. His interest in geotechnical engineering was peaked after taking Civil Engineering 360, Soil Engineering as an undergraduate.

“I found that I had a good grasp of the concepts and really enjoyed the lectures and class work,” John said. “My professor for the course, Dr. David White, really inspired me and spoke with me personally to let me know of the greater opportunities I would have if I were to get my master’s degree.”

He decision to continue his education at Iowa State was easy.

“I really like it here and have loved the time I spent at Iowa State,” John said. “I thought to myself, ‘why change a good thing?’. Also, Dr. White inspired me to go into the field; I really wanted to work with him for my master’s research.”

Real-life experience

John’s master’s degree will be in geotechnical engineering; he’ll specifically be working with “intelligent compaction,” which is new technology being developed to accelerate projects which require a lot of earthwork (i.e. roads and highways). A heavy feat, but John said he feels prepared.

“I feel that Iowa State does a great job in preparing their undergraduates in civil engineering,” he said. “The number of companies that recruit through Iowa State is a true testament to the respect for the programs that Iowa State offers.”

John was able to experience this first hand after completing two summer internships as an undergrad. The first was with the Federal Highway Administration where he designed stretches of highway on U.S. Highway 20. Running east-west and 3,365 miles long, Highway 20 is the longest road in the United States.

This internship also paved the way for occasional business trips, including an international symposium on highway design in Chicago and a research project presentation in Washington D.C.

“I did research on the economic impact of the U.S. Highway 20 project being completed in Western Iowa,” John said. “Basically I just presented what is going on with the project and how it has affected Iowa's economy.”

Take two

John’s second internship was with Shive-Hattery, Inc. in Des Moines, Iowa, a nationally ranked architectural, engineering, consulting firm. John helped to survey two large subdivisions in Des Moines; setting the position for utility lines, property corners, streets, and foundations of homes. He was also the on site inspector for an 80-acre natural resource project in Oksaloosa, Iowa, where he was in charge of making sure the specifications for construction were met.

“The internship at Shive-Hattery was great, because it really helped me realize how design relates to construction,” John said. “I learned a lot about the construction practice and how what the engineer designs are constructed in the field.”

Under construction

Some day down the road, John hopes to be able to make his own ideas a reality.

“My dream job would be to work for a geotechnical design firm which works on large-scale construction projects,” he said. “Essentially, I want to design the things you see on the Discovery Channel.”