Recent Structural Engineering Intern Nicole Chambliss gives us the inside scoop on her internship journey, from her first day to final takeaways. Join her as she looks back on her summer of learning, site visits, and engineering.
INSIGHT | 09.28.2026 | Team + Culture
Follow My Journey: Top Internship Takeaways
Getting Up to Speed
I got to know my project teams and the work itself. I met with each team to understand the sites, the scope, current project status, and then began digging into drawings and the latest structural set to really absorb where each project stood.
Ramping Up
I began to look at design criteria and loading for each project (materials, building use, key connections). I got to use RAM Structural System to size steel beams and columns for several school projects! It brought the steel design I’d learned to life.
Site Visits
I got to check out two sites, one of them my former high school! It was a full-circle moment to see our designs under construction.
Networking
The CREDA Intern Program kicked off. I got the chance to tour offices across the CRE industry, from engineers, to developers, to brokers.
Branching Out
Later on in the summer I learned some other forms of analysis including running a vibration analysis on a staircase in RISA-3D and doing a wind analysis on a parapet for another project.
Carry It Through
I got the opportunity to carry the gravity design through to completion for two (2) different schools, and for one of them, I put together a permit calculation package for my work! Getting to see a project from intial criteria to a submittable package was very satisfying.
Internship Top Takeaways
Moments Matter
There were plenty of fun office moments throughout the summer: coffee runs, lunch and learns, and intern bonding activities like mini golf, to name a few!
Diving Deeper
I really enjoyed learning about the business development side of the industry, seeing how engineers work alongside so many different parties to actually get a project built.
Real Impact
I truly appreciated getting to do real work, from day one. I contributed to projects close to home, and ones that will genuinely have an impact on my own community.
Speak up about what you want to learn! Everyone at Coughlin Porter Lundeen is so genuinely eager to teach and help. The more curiosity you show, the more you’ll get out of it.
-Nicole Chambliss