With the second week of school just beginning, it is crazy to think that I’m actually a senior now! It is weird to think just how fast college has gone, it feels like yesterday I was moving into Pardee Tower as a freshmen.
Throwback to Move In Day!
As I mentioned, this summer I interned with Turner in the estimating department. I talked about my experiences here, but overall I had an amazing summer! It was tough saying goodbye to my supervisor and all of coworkers since the thing that really completed my summer was all of the people I got to work with. We had a final intern event where all of the interns got to attend an Angels game and we watched the game in our own intern suite! It was definitely a great way to wrap up the summer.
Getting back into school mode is always tricky after summer, but it is great working the Viterbi Luau to get back into the swing of things. The Luau is a fun event put on during welcome week for all the new freshmen and transfer engineering students!
Ahola! We’re getting ready for the #ViterbiLuau in the E-Quad and cannot wait to welcome the Viterbi Class of 2019! pic.twitter.com/F2zZ7qfVKY
— USC Viterbi Student (@viterbistudent) August 20, 2015
This semester I’m taking a wide variety of civil engineering and architecture classes: ARCH 405a, ARCH 214, CE 334, CE 408, and CE 507. ARCH 405a is my typical building science studio class, and throughout the semester we will be completing small projects that focus on concepts like vertical and horizontal enclosures, site planning, electrical systems, mechanical systems, and interior design! My other architecture class is ARCH 214, which focuses on the history of architecture. So far we have already learned about how architecture influences culture and affects society, and it is cool to get the backstory on a lot of famous buildings!
On the civil engineering side, I’m looking forward to CE 334 which is a lab based class focusing on materials. Throughout the semester we will be testing steel, smashing concrete, simulating earthquakes, and focusing on all the different materials buildings are made out of. We also have to come up with our own topic to investigate for the final project! I’m also taking CE 408 which is a class that investigates all the risk involved with civil engineering, and how to analyze problems with complex and varying outcomes. Finally, CE 507 is a graduate level class I’m taking since I was accepted into the Progressive Degree Program (PDP) for structural engineering. PDP is a great program because it not only reduces the number of classes need to complete a master’s program, it also allows you to start taking classes as an undergrad!
However, the class I’m most excited for is NAUT 001 which is Deepwater Cruising aka Sailing Class. I heard about the class my freshmen year and knew I had to take it, and now I’m finally getting the chance to! The main highlight of the class is a 2-day sailing trip to Catalina where the students are completely in charge of navigating and operating the boat to Catalina and back. On the first day of lecture we were told to refer to our professor as captain, so I’m already getting in the sailing mindset!
Besides all the classes I’m taking, I’m excited for all my involvements and organizations. I had my first class with my students for Freshmen Academy and my section already seems great! As a coach, I can’t wait to get to know all my freshmen better and help them through the semester by offering advice and planning fun activities for them. For the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), I’m helping organize our Big Buddy program and plan socials for all our members to get to know each other better. I’ll be attending the National ASCE Conference in New York City this October which I’m really looking forward to! And finally I’m pumped up for another great semester on the hockey team with Ellen and Sophie.
Great first day of Freshmen Academy, my section definitely proved that engineers can be social! #ENGR102 #coaching #ViterbiClass
— Kelly Lynch (@KellyLynchUSC) August 27, 2015
I’m sure this semester is going to be quite busy, but I know it is going to be a lot of fun too! I can’t wait for a great senior year.
[author title=”Author” author_id=””] href="#" data-color-override="false" data-hover-color-override="false" data-hover-text-color-override="#fff">Button Text
