Future Tech Leader

Alliance News |
Stephanie Bishop and Katelyn Welch, EIT, work on reviewing the bridge guardrail layout shop drawings for the Morrill Hill Road over Elbow Brook, in Andover, NH. The AISC Steel Construction Manual is being referenced to identify the properties for the steel used in the rail posts.

Student name: Stephanie Bishop
Town: Milford
Age: 17

What year of high school are you in and name of high school: Senior; Milford High School & Applied Technology Center

What are your career goals after high school: Civil and Environmental Engineer

What DID you want to be prior to Running Start and choosing the above career path? I wanted to either be a graphic designer, forensic scientist or biologist.

What inspired/influenced you to choose this career path: I love hands-on work. The whole design process from an idea to a sketch to an object seemed appealing to me. After taking the first engineering course at my high school, one project particularly stood out: paper bridges. I always wondered how bridges were able to hold so much weight. That curiosity combined with the knowledge gained from that unit in class, influenced my decision that civil engineering was the right path for me.

Provide a short description of the steps you are taking while in high school to pursue your career path: To start, I took all of the engineering courses available at my high school to make sure I liked it and wanted to continue with the subject. I got involved with STE(A)M nights as a student ambassador and got to share my knowledge and potentially spark an interest in younger kids. I wanted to know what other types of engineering were like so I joined the Women in Technology program with BAE Systems. This helped me gain an understanding of other options available should I decide that civil isn’t a right fit for me. I am currently in an internship with Hoyle, Tanner which is an amazing opportunity at the high school level to experience civil engineering first hand.

Tell me about your internship, what it involves, and who it’s with: My internship is with a private civil engineering firm called Hoyle, Tanner & Associates located in Manchester. I’m currently in the structures group which focuses on bridges but there’s also highway, environmental, and aviation groups within the firm. Being a structural engineer involves looking over blueprints, CAD drawings, quantities, load calculations, etc. To get out of the office you can also visit a job site and make sure everything is in check, which I’ve had the amazing opportunity to do within this internship.

What’s your plan upon high school graduation: I plan on furthering my education at the collegiate level for a master’s degree in civil engineering.

What Running Start classes have you taken through Manchester Community College: I have taken ADMT 230 CAD/CAM for Manufacturing, and ADMT 115 Blueprint Reading.

What advice would you give your peers in terms of their future/career etc.: I would suggest to follow what you love. If you like it then go for it. If you don’t know what you like then try everything you can while you can. That’s the beauty of high school – there’s so many opportunities for classes you just have to be courageous and go for it.

How can students seek out opportunities while in high school: See if your district or school has a career planning program, career and technical program, a career coordinator through student services and identify if there are any extended learning opportunities (i.e.- work based learning, tours, articulation agreements or Running Start credits). You can also contact your local community college and see what early college classes are offered. For more information on early college or Running Start, visit ccsnh.edu.

About your school: Milford High School & Applied Technology Center offers 13 career and technical programs, 10 of which offer a dual credit or articulation agreements. Milford also has a career development counselor/school-to-career coordinator who handles most of the work-based learning (WBL) opportunities for students. More than 50 upperclassmen each year take the elective course Career Focus Internship where they learn and practice both technical and essential 21st century career readiness skills. Seniors may apply for a WBL opportunity such as internship in a field of interest and the career and technical program they have been pursuing.

Stephanie is a self-starter and motivated student, a pleasure to have in class. She is also an accomplished student, she found something she was passionate about and explored every avenue to make the right career choice,” said Frank Xydias, professor in the Department of Engineering, Advanced Manufacturing and Computer Aided Design at MCC. “You could see that she was passionate about learning more engineering skills. After freshman year I knew engineering was her career choice, although I was not sure what type of engineer. It was junior year that she shared civil engineering was her goal. From that point, all the projects she received had undertones of civil engineering concepts and skills. Stephanie was motivated both in and out of class to find experiences to help her. She attended off site tours with the Department of Transportation, Hitchiner Manufacturing, and more.”