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Discoveries, innovations, and insights that illuminate the future of the built environment

2020 Interns: Here’s what to expect at McKinstry

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Editor’s Note: We asked 2019 intern Jason Orr to reflect on his summer at McKinstry, respond to a few questions, and share his tips, best practices and suggestions for future interns.

Q: What are the keys to a successful internship at McKinstry?

A: Everyone has a unique experience here. The work from position to position varies greatly, and the departments themselves work on very different projects. However, across all positions there are a few key actions that can help future interns be successful.

Jason Orr.

The first is to get to know your immediate team. These are the people you’ll be spending the most time with, meaning you can learn the most from their expertise. Work hard with your team, but also get to know people on a personal level.

Secondly, you should go to as many events as you can fit into your schedule. The B.L.U.E. Program team does a fantastic job scheduling events and giving interns opportunities to learn about relevant topics. At these events, you should get to know a variety of people—everyone has a unique story to tell.

Lastly, future interns should connect with people at McKinstry who have the same hobbies/interests if you want to make a deeper connection outside of the office. I ended up rock climbing this summer with two awesome fellow employees at Little Si (a mountain outside of Seattle). It was an amazing experience!

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What I’ve learned at McKinstry…and what comes next

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Growing up, I always loved science and math. When those two classes combined in my high school physics course, I decided to major in engineering. Though I wasn’t sure what being an engineer would specifically entail in the professional world, I knew that my many interests (math, physics, science, tech, Boeing’s newest jet, epic LEGO Star Wars sets, etc…) put me in a place where studying to become an engineer made sense.

What I hadn’t accounted for was my development into a full extrovert. I love people. I love hearing stories about where they’ve been and where they come from, what they do and how they got there, meeting new people, working with people…you get the idea.

Stereotypically, engineers are not known as “social butterflies.” My love for people has sometimes made me unsure whether I’d picked the right major during college. I’m happy to say that my experience at McKinstry has shifted me back toward confidence in myself and my future career.

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“Ask an Intern”: Clarissa Ferreira answers seven questions about her internship

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Q: How would you describe what you’re doing this summer in 50 words or less?

A: As a construction intern for McKinstry’s Phoenix office, my role includes assisting in the coordination and documentation of project-related activities, specifically for a project at the University of Arizona.

Clarissa Ferreira on a jobsite visit at the University of Arizona.

Q: What’s one thing about McKinstry that you’ve been surprised to discover this summer?

A: I’ve been truly impressed by the quality of the people. Everyone I’ve come across at McKinstry has been amazingly kind, competent and helpful.

Q: What misconceptions do you think people have about being an intern?

A: One misconception (and borderline fear) for many students about being an intern is that you’ll be getting coffee instead of doing valuable work that can help build your career. One of my personal misconceptions was that I would be expected to know a lot more than I do. However, my experience at McKinstry has been that you do not know what you do not know, and asking questions is encouraged. Asking questions has given me the opportunity to get the most out of my internship and gain a lot of valuable experience.

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Aidan Korper: Getting to know me & my journey to McKinstry’s B.L.U.E. Program

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My name is Aidan Korper and I’m working as a project engineering intern on McKinstry’s Fire Protection team at the Portland, Ore. office. I’m a rising junior at Wentworth Institute of Technology in Boston, studying construction management.

Aidan Korper.

When I started my search for a summer internship, I focused my search in the Pacific Northwest. I’ve always heard such great things about the area, from its vast forests to explore and opportunities for fun on two wheels to its unique culture and down-to-earth people (I’ve confirmed these things are true!). I figured if I could make it work logistically, I would drive out to the west coast for a summer of learning and exploring!

Through some research and connections I made through school and travels during spring semester, I had narrowed my search to a few companies I felt were on the forefront of the construction industry. It seemed like a long shot but with some hard work, good timing, and a whole lotta’ luck, I was able to secure an internship position with one of the top companies on my list—McKinstry! With McKinstry’s passion for sustainable building/design and drive to think beyond the traditional construction process, I knew there was truly no better program and group of people I could learn from.

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Bunji McLeod: Getting to know me & my journey to McKinstry’s B.L.U.E. Program

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So, first things first, my legal name is not Bunji. I was born in Kagoshima, Japan, on the south end of the island Kyushu. Originally, my mother wanted to give me the name Benjamin. However, I’ve been told “benjo” is Japanese slang for toilet, which must have been why I soon was born—”legally”—as Jason Shang McLeod.

Bunji McLeod.

That name didn’t last long. In the operating room, my dad mentioned that the umbilical cord for a baby is like a bungee cord with a little human attached to the end. My mom didn’t think it was as funny as he did, but I quickly became baby Bunji—much like the name Benji (i.e. Benjamin), but with a little extra spring of uniqueness in it. It has no meaning in Japanese, no cultural rooting in my Taiwanese ethnicity, and no daredevil bungee jump that deemed me worthy of such a nickname. It’s simply my name now.  

Three years after jumping into this world, I moved to Bellingham, Wash., where I lived underneath the smells of damp shade and never-ending greenery. There, I took two classes with a high school teacher who has shaped my college experience more than any other: Mr. Doud. The local legend of a physics teacher could inspire us to tackle any mathematical challenge with passionate fervor, using only a pen, whiteboard and cheesy one-liners developed over decades of classes. Because of him, I am here now in Spokane going into my fourth year of mechanical engineering and working at McKinstry.

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Jason Orr: Getting to know me & my journey to McKinstry’s B.L.U.E. Program

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When you want something, all the universe conspires to help you achieve it.

Paulo Coelho
Jason Orr.

As an avid reader, I believe people always have something to share. To accomplish anything in life requires shared wisdom across communities and the selflessness of those who are knowledgeable. Let me introduce myself.

My name is Jason Orr, and I am going into my final year studying Mechanical Engineering at Gonzaga University. Before starting my freshman year, the Engineering program at Gonzaga seemed like a great fit. Solving problems was always fun and working hands-on felt more engaging. As I continued through my initial semesters, there was an internal conversation with the malice of a 2016 Presidential debate happening in my mind. Is this what I want to do? Do I love this? Questions led to discontinuity and confusion. The only thing I knew was I wanted to have an impact.

We were all made by the same hand, and we have the same soul.

Paulo Coelho

The curriculum was undeniably tough: calculus, statics, physics. There was no point in asking what the “hard” classes were because there were multiple every semester. Eventually, I would ask a professor for his perspective and opinion. He offered me sound advice and incredible wisdom on how to persevere your way to excellence as an individual and an engineer.

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Steve Leonard grows McKinstry’s fire protection capabilities across the Pacific Northwest

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steveleonardpic

Back in the late 1980s, Steve Leonard was living in Southern California and thought he wanted to work for a fire department, maybe as a firefighter. When a friend asked if he would consider working in fire protection design, it changed Steve’s direction and sent him off on a 30-year journey into the world of fire protection.

“No one is born with a passion for sprinklers or alarms, it’s usually a series of twists and turns that bring people into the fire protection industry,” Steve explained. “I didn’t think about fire protection when I was a kid, but I’m glad that my career path led me into this field.”

At McKinstry, we’ve offered fire protection services for decades because identifying and installing the right protection system to prevent or reduce fire damage is fundamental to every project we undertake. McKinstry has built a national reputation for designing and installing fire protection systems for a wide variety of venues—from office, retail, and hotel buildings to stadiums, laboratories, and museums. Owners and designers come to McKinstry for our expertise on systems, costs, and knowledge of all current fire codes and compliance standards for the National Fire Protection Association.

Steve’s fire protection path has been extremely unique at McKinstry. Since joining the company in 2010, he’s lived and worked in three of McKinstry’s major Pacific Northwest offices—Portland, Spokane and Seattle.

“I sometimes joke that I’ve completed the trifecta,” Steve said. “Working in three of our Pacific Northwest offices has been a pleasure, and they all have a different atmosphere that’s still connected by the common McKinstry culture.”

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My journey from intern to employee

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mills_andreaHello! My name is Andrea Mills and I’m a recent college graduate from Gonzaga University. I came to McKinstry for an internship with the Enterprise Sales and Marketing team. I wanted to gain more experience and learn about the built environment. I’d always had an interest in buildings and the people who build them, but I never really knew where to start.

Thankfully, my internship helped me decide where to go and how to get there. In fact, I was promoted at the end of my internship—I’m now a business operations coordinator for our Seattle-based Energy team.

Over the course of my internship, I developed my marketing skills and began to wrap my head around the construction industry. I tackled many different kinds of projects: Polishing employee resumes, creating marketing materials and even conducting marketing research on solar power. I found the B.L.U.E. Program to be the best kind of trial and error—it was helpful to figure out my strengths and weaknesses and find out what I’m passionate about as an intern. Now I can apply and act on that knowledge as an employee.

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Welcome to the workplace

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spies_skanderMcKinstry is a proud supporter of the Skills that Shine mentorship program offered through the Washington State Opportunity Scholarship (WSOS), which provides both scholarships and mentoring for college students from low- and middle-income households majoring in science, technology, engineering and math fields.

As part of the program, I’ve volunteered as a mentor for several talented scholars—sharing my experiences and coaching them as they transition towards a professional career. Over a similar period, McKinstry’s engineering department has hired a robust cadre of young engineers who are each uniquely talented and passionate about delivering high-performing buildings for our clients.

The infusion of young talent—combined with a deep bench of experienced engineers—has paid serious dividends for our engineering team. As we continue to grow, recruiting just the right people to contribute to this culture can be tricky, especially in Seattle’s competitive labor market. Working with the WSOS scholars and sitting in on some recent interviews prompted me to think about what I’ve learned from some of my co-workers who’ve deeply impressed me.

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My B.L.U.E. Summer: Griffin Small (Seattle)

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Hello! My name is Griffin Small and I spent the summer of 2018 working as a construction project engineer intern at McKinstry’s Seattle headquarters. Primarily, I’ve been working on the Central Kitsap High School/Middle School jobsite.

Griffin Small.

Griffin Small.

Learning was my biggest takeaway from this summer—lots and lots of learning. Before I dive into that, though, I’ll introduce myself a little. I was born and raised in Edmonds, Wash. and am currently attending Saint Martin’s University in Olympia, Wash. I’m a rising senior majoring in mechanical engineering. I’m also a soccer player and a goalkeeper (any other goalkeepers should feel free to reach out, we’re a dying breed)!

As you can probably tell from my photo, I’m also a full-on ginger (red hair and freckles, if you were unfamiliar with the term), so other gingers please feel free to reach out as well—we’re also a dying breed. Being an athlete and an engineering student simultaneously has been a tremendous challenge. Learning to manage my time playing soccer and traveling while also keeping with my studies has been tough, but I think it will help me in real-life situations as I get older.

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