• CE Student Experience Survey
  • Publications & Best Practices
    • NCSEA SE3 Surveys
    • CE Student Experience Survey
    • SEAONC SE3's Commitment to Racial Justice
    • 2016 Pay Report
    • 2016 Survey >
      • Demographics
      • Full Report
    • Best Practices
    • Blog
    • Resources >
      • Reference List
  • News
  • SE3 Events
    • Upcoming Events >
      • Racial Equity Book Club
    • SE3 Event Archive >
      • 2020 Firm Leader DEI Roundtable
      • 2020 Summer Speed Mentorship Event
      • 2020 Webinar Lessons Learned From the 2008 Recession >
        • 2020 Webinar Program
      • 2020 A/E/C Roundtable Discussion >
        • A/E/C Roundtable Program
      • 2019 Workshop - Building an Inclusive Workplace
      • Engineer Your Dream Career
      • 2019 Summer SE3 Industry Speed Mentorship Event
      • 2019 Symposium Event Recap >
        • Symposium Program
        • Thought Leaders
        • Symposium Planning Committee
        • Travel
        • 2019 Symposium Sponsors >
          • Sponsors
        • FAQ
      • 2019 Long Term Mentorship Program Kick-Off
      • 2019 SEA-MW Section Meeting
      • 2019 ACEC Annual Meeting
      • 2018 Fall Panel Discussion >
        • Program
      • 2018 Summer Speed Mentoring Event
      • NCSEA Webinar - SE3 Mission & How your SEA Can Benefit
      • 2018 Spring Speed Mentorship Event
      • 2017 WiD+C Conference
      • 2017 Fall Speed Mentorship Event
      • 2017 Symposium >
        • Program
        • Thought Leaders
        • Sponsors
      • 2016 ATC / SE3 Webinar
      • 2016 SEAONC September Dinner Meeting
  • Contributors
    • Leadership Team
    • SE3 Task Groups >
      • 2020 SE3 Task Groups
      • 2019 SE3 Task Groups
      • 2018 SE3 Task Groups
      • 2017 SE3 Task Groups >
        • Mentorship Program >
          • Mentor Info Package
        • Outreach
        • Pay Report
        • Follow-up Interviews
        • Best Practices Resource Guide
  • FAQ
  • Contact Us
​The Structural Engineering Engagement and Equity (SE3) Committee held its second “speed mentoring” event on Thursday, April 5th, 2018 at ARUP’s office in San Francisco. The event began at 6pm with a welcome address from Hayley Dickson and Theresa Curtis, the committee co-chairs, followed by each mentor introducing themselves, briefly describing their past experience and career trajectory.
 
The format of the event was the same as the previous event. The mentors were divided into pairs and met with groups of three to five mentees at a time for 12 minute discussions. At the end of each session, mentees rotated to the next pair of mentors. By then end of the event, all mentees had a chance to speak with all of the mentors. Mentees where provided with information packets beforehand and came prepared with thoughtful, important questions. 
Picture
​The event attracted a large group of mentees at various stages in their careers. Topics of conversation included work life balance, networking, public speaking, how to advance in your career and more.  The mentors provided incredible insight into these topics. 
 
A common theme of discussion was the importance of networking and some strategies for the younger engineers who may find it difficult. One mentee asked Eugene Tuan, president of Tuan and Robinson Structural Engineers, how he built a client base when starting his own business and what advice he had for someone who is introverted. Eugene explained that building relationships with new clients and networking in general is like making friends. The same skills you have developed to make friends throughout your lifetime are the skills you use to build business relationships. He encouraged the mentee to not see his introversion as a limit on his ability to be successful in business. 
Picture
​Kate Stillwell, founder and CEO of Jumpstart Insurance Solutions, also stressed the importance of networking in business. She spoke about working on her networking skills during her time in business school and suggested Toastmasters as a great alternative for young engineers looking to develop their interpersonal skills.
 
Another topic of conversation was how to be chosen to work on the interesting projects in your firm. David Ojala, a senior associate at Thornton Tomasetti, described how all engineers have to work on the standard, code-based projects. Those projects are necessary to keep all companies going. However, he suggested doing outside research on structural engineering topics of interest. This would put the engineer at an advantage when their company gets a unique project. He also suggested joining one of a few of the SEAONC committees, which provide opportunities to explore some of the more complex challenges in structural engineering. 
Picture
​The SE3 Committee is delighted by the results of this event. The committee is very grateful for the participation of an amazing group of mentors. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience with our mentees. Thanks also to everyone who participated as a mentee and asked such thoughtful questions. SE3 looks forward to future mentorship events to continue to foster connections in the structural engineering community.
Picture
​For more information about the SE3 Committee visit SE3project.org. To learn more about the NCSEA SE3 Committee, visit ncsea.com/committees/SE3 or email se3@ncsea.com. Also, be sure to take the newly released 2018 NCSEA SE3 Survey about engagement and equity in the structural engineering profession that can be found at ncesa.com/committees.se3.
 
Picture
  • CE Student Experience Survey
  • Publications & Best Practices
    • NCSEA SE3 Surveys
    • CE Student Experience Survey
    • SEAONC SE3's Commitment to Racial Justice
    • 2016 Pay Report
    • 2016 Survey >
      • Demographics
      • Full Report
    • Best Practices
    • Blog
    • Resources >
      • Reference List
  • News
  • SE3 Events
    • Upcoming Events >
      • Racial Equity Book Club
    • SE3 Event Archive >
      • 2020 Firm Leader DEI Roundtable
      • 2020 Summer Speed Mentorship Event
      • 2020 Webinar Lessons Learned From the 2008 Recession >
        • 2020 Webinar Program
      • 2020 A/E/C Roundtable Discussion >
        • A/E/C Roundtable Program
      • 2019 Workshop - Building an Inclusive Workplace
      • Engineer Your Dream Career
      • 2019 Summer SE3 Industry Speed Mentorship Event
      • 2019 Symposium Event Recap >
        • Symposium Program
        • Thought Leaders
        • Symposium Planning Committee
        • Travel
        • 2019 Symposium Sponsors >
          • Sponsors
        • FAQ
      • 2019 Long Term Mentorship Program Kick-Off
      • 2019 SEA-MW Section Meeting
      • 2019 ACEC Annual Meeting
      • 2018 Fall Panel Discussion >
        • Program
      • 2018 Summer Speed Mentoring Event
      • NCSEA Webinar - SE3 Mission & How your SEA Can Benefit
      • 2018 Spring Speed Mentorship Event
      • 2017 WiD+C Conference
      • 2017 Fall Speed Mentorship Event
      • 2017 Symposium >
        • Program
        • Thought Leaders
        • Sponsors
      • 2016 ATC / SE3 Webinar
      • 2016 SEAONC September Dinner Meeting
  • Contributors
    • Leadership Team
    • SE3 Task Groups >
      • 2020 SE3 Task Groups
      • 2019 SE3 Task Groups
      • 2018 SE3 Task Groups
      • 2017 SE3 Task Groups >
        • Mentorship Program >
          • Mentor Info Package
        • Outreach
        • Pay Report
        • Follow-up Interviews
        • Best Practices Resource Guide
  • FAQ
  • Contact Us