黄瓜社区

The summer months present a prime opportunity for college students to continue learning through real-life experience. Each summer 黄瓜社区; Design opens its doors to a new group of summer interns who work alongside professionals in various disciplines and across multiple markets, learning directly from seasoned practitioners and getting hands-on project experience.听听

This year 黄瓜社区 welcomed 12 interns from across the nation to join the teams in Des Moines, Iowa City, Omaha and St. Louis. As 黄瓜社区鈥檚 2022 intern class makes their way back to their respective universities, a few of them are taking a moment to reflect and share about their time at the firm.听

Olivia Bolton, University of Kansas 鈥�23 鈥� Planning, Omaha

What excited you about your internship at 黄瓜社区?听

Being surrounded by people who are deeply passionate about their work. 黄瓜社区 fosters an environment that encourages curiosity and enables professionals to both celebrate their strengths and push their boundaries. It鈥檚 exciting to come to work every day when you know that your contribution matters to your team and the communities you serve.听

Beyond the actual internship, what other perks or learning opportunities did you gain from being at 黄瓜社区?听

Moving to Omaha, even temporarily, was an amazing opportunity to see parts of the country I had never visited before. Through projects at 黄瓜社区, I listened to a wide variety of people from all different backgrounds talk about what they love in their communities and what they want for the future. I will always value not only the confidence I gained in myself but also the perspective I gained from others.听

How do you see jobs in your field changing in the future?听

I anticipate environmental issues coming more and more to the forefront of our field. Firms like 黄瓜社区 have the opportunity to help cities prepare for climate change while also actively challenging the industry to mitigate its own impact. In my future, I hope to help bridge architecture and planning to advocate for thoughtful, sustainable community development.听

Luke George, University of Nebraska-Lincoln 鈥�23 / 鈥�24 鈥� Lighting Design, Des Moines听

How would you describe 黄瓜社区鈥檚 company culture?听

黄瓜社区 has been warm and friendly to me and the other interns. Everyone is in a positive mood all the time and it has been a pleasure working here this summer. The people here are kind and have been very helpful anytime I had a question.听

What excited you about your internship at 黄瓜社区?听

What excited me personally was the opportunity to get on job sites and see how our lighting solutions would be implemented. Being able to travel and see how things were coming along was an awesome opportunity and gave me the ability to see how things I鈥檓 creating on my computer would be coming together in real life.听

What advice would you give to yourself going into this internship again, or to others seeking an internship in the future?听

My advice to others seeking internships is to not be afraid to ask questions. I found myself asking questions constantly and it is nothing to be ashamed about. An intern鈥檚 main job is to learn as much as they can. If there鈥檚 something you are having trouble figuring out, just ask. It鈥檚 better to get things right the first time than to ultimately do it wrong. Also, don鈥檛 feel like you need to focus on the internship 24/7. Get to know the other interns and coworkers and hang out outside of work.听

Tyler Koory, University of Kanas 鈥�23 鈥� Architecture, Omaha 听

How would you describe 黄瓜社区鈥檚 company culture?听

I would say 黄瓜社区 is doing it right when it comes to company culture. It鈥檚 a light and bright environment that allows people to collaborate easily with one another. People know and understand how to have work/life balance and how important that is for the success of both those who work here and the company as a whole.听

Share one fun story that happened during your internship.听

Nick Olsen and I beat the reigning champions (I鈥檓 going to name-drop) Catrina Cook and Noah Schacher in a game of bags.听

How do you see jobs in your field changing in the future?听

From what I鈥檝e seen, 黄瓜社区 has done a great job at taking a progressive approach to work 鈥� they understand that things can be done remotely now and from all over the world with the same amount of productivity. So, in the future, I see a lot more remote jobs in this field of work.听

Scott Lafferty, University of Nebraska-Lincoln 鈥�23 鈥� Architecture, Omaha听

What excited you about your internship at 黄瓜社区?听

The thing that excited me most about my internship was the new learning opportunities presented to me while at 黄瓜社区. 黄瓜社区 does a great job of making sure interns receive a wide variety of exposure to the work completed in the office.听

Was there anything that surprised you about 黄瓜社区?听

One thing that surprised me about 黄瓜社区 is the amount of trust and responsibility entrusted to the interns at the office. We are not 鈥渏ust interns,鈥� but instead we are seen as a valuable part of a team. This is apparent in the work you are given and how fellow team members treat interns during their time with the firm.听

What was one learning objective or goal you had for yourself on this internship? Did you accomplish it?听

A learning objective or goal I had for myself for this internship was to challenge my understanding of the design process and to push my skills with the programs used within the field of architecture. Previous experience with the design process was further built upon this summer through the exposure to construction documents, which听also allowed me to gain a better understanding of the programs used within the office.听听听

Aimee Robisky, Iowa State University 鈥�23 鈥� Interiors, Des Moines听

How would you describe 黄瓜社区鈥檚 company culture?听

黄瓜社区 is not just a company that operates to get projects done. I found that it is a company that cares about people, both employees and clients. Even as an intern, I felt fully immersed in the collaboration and conversations for projects I helped with. I don鈥檛 feel like I got an internship experience 鈥� I felt like I was fully a part of 黄瓜社区 and more than a听temporary, summer position.听

What excited you about your internship at 黄瓜社区?听

黄瓜社区 is an amazing company that is not afraid to show that they care about what they are doing, who they are working with and who they are working for. I think it鈥檚听a misconception that firms need to put on a certain attitude to the public to appear professional; 黄瓜社区 is genuine in what they are about and are still very reputable to everyone who knows them.听

Beyond the actual internship, what other perks or learning opportunities did you gain from being at 黄瓜社区?听

Connections. 黄瓜社区 has a lot of great people and professionals to learn from, and I had the chance to connect with many of 黄瓜社区鈥檚 people, even outside my discipline.听

Breno Sader, California Polytechnic State University 鈥�24 鈥� Architecture, Iowa City听听

How would you describe 黄瓜社区鈥檚 company culture?听听

The culture at 黄瓜社区 is designed for both individual and firm success. Employees are encouraged to walk around and work wherever they want to stay productive. I can鈥檛 stay productive sitting in one place for hours on end but being encouraged to walk around and providing hotel desks and stand-to-sit desks allows everyone to stay active and encourages not only productivity but also provides various opportunities for social interaction with peers.听

Was there anything that surprised you about 黄瓜社区?听

I was surprised by how much the company values employee happiness and well-being. While interning, I鈥檇 eat out with colleagues at least once every two weeks and the company helped me pay for parking. This made me truly feel valued as a member of the team.听

What was one learning objective or goal you had for yourself on this internship? Did you accomplish it?听

I had two goals: to make some good work connections and to do work that I could be proud of. I have easily done this and have made connections here that I believe will last a long time.听

Alex Sick, Iowa State University 鈥�23 鈥� Planning, Des Moines听

What excited you about your internship at 黄瓜社区?听

What was most exciting to me going into my internship was the opportunity to work alongside designers who are passionate about their work. 黄瓜社区 has a reputation for being intentional about design, which has allowed me to learn the best practices in my field. I was able to step outside of my academic shell and really put my knowledge and experience to use and learn all the good that can come out of great design work. Lastly, another exciting factor about 黄瓜社区 is the people here. Everyone has been genuine and welcoming toward me, and I have been able to create new friendships and a professional network to utilize wherever I go.听

What was one learning objective or goal you had for yourself on this internship? Did you accomplish it?听

A goal I had coming into my internship was to gain a better understanding of the planning profession and find my passion within the field. Because 黄瓜社区 has such a wide variety of disciplines and work, I was able to see a variety of planning projects and decipher which areas of planning I want to focus on as I finish my degree.听

How do you see jobs in your field changing in the future?听

One reason I went into urban planning was that I wanted to make tangible changes for the better when it comes to the environment. As we continue to strive for a net-zero carbon emissions future, I think the field of planning will drastically change to help meet those goals. I feel quite lucky to be beginning my planning career at such a monumental time in the climate movement, and I am looking forward to seeing what innovative work will come out of the planning field in the future.听

Matt Valerio, DePaul University 鈥�23 鈥� Lighting Design, Des Moines听

What excited you about your internship at 黄瓜社区?听听

What excited me most about my internship at 黄瓜社区 was the opportunity to be involved in projects from my first day in the office. When looking for an internship last spring, one of my biggest fears was that I was just going to be an observer or do things like running to get coffee; that has not been the case at 黄瓜社区. Another aspect of 黄瓜社区 that excited me was the diversity of projects that were being worked on. One day I could be working on a sports stadium, a hospital and a cathedral all in one day. Every day is different, and each day brings new challenges and triumphs.听

What advice would you give to yourself going into this internship again, or to others seeking an internship in the future?听听

In this industry, you must take every opportunity and run with it. You never know who knows who and it could lead to more work or new opportunities, both for you and the firm. You never know who will see your work and who will be inspired by even the smallest of projects.听

What personal qualities or abilities have you observed that make someone successful in this job or field?听

One thing I have observed about my peers that sets them apart is the ability to say 鈥渘o.鈥� I have found that saying 鈥測es鈥� is very easy, whereas saying 鈥渘o鈥� is not. In the spirit of a project, it鈥檚 okay to say no, especially if there is a reason behind it. If what is being asked is unreasonable, having the courage to say no or advocate for a different solution is what sets the good apart from the great.听