May 2023 - Graduation
Spring always feels like a new beginning after months of winter. The days get longer, the weather changes, plants are blooming and graduation is suddenly here for many newly minted engineers.
It can be stressful leaving college behind, but it’s also a time of great possibilities to begin charting your professional journey and life’s work. I still remember embarking on a cross-country road trip out west after graduation, seeing new parts of the country and interviewing for engineering jobs. My career and the places I’ve called home for years all trace back to that trip many years ago.
This moment in time is particularly exciting with the infusion of federal infrastructure funds and new policies that give us all the chance to develop new ways to deliver projects and reimagine our multimodal transportation system. The sheer number of projects also creates many transportation job opportunities for young engineers seeking a starting point.
For veteran engineers, this is a time to welcome and mentor new co-workers and their new ideas and approaches. Our work is enhanced when we include everyone in planning and decision making and new colleagues also give us a chance to share what we love about our profession.
For our graduating student members, I urge you to stay active in ASCE as you transition into the workforce. While not all practicing civil engineers are ASCE members, those who lead our profession are. Membership helps with networking, but it also will keep you up to date on new issues, share continuing education options and expose you to new opportunities. Graduating students enjoy a free automatic upgrade to their first year of professional membership and can stay connected through a Younger Member Group for those 35 and younger.
It's an exciting season of change and I look forward to seeing what our new graduates add to our profession moving forward. Congratulations on your accomplishments.
Thank you and stay safe,
Roger
Roger M. Millar, Jr., P.E., F.AICP, F.ASCE
President, Transportation & Development Institute (T&DI)
American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)