ASCE UCI Volunteers at the Giving Farm
On March 1st, ASCE UCI’s external hosted a volunteer event at the Giving Farm in Westminster, California. The farm was located behind the local high school, Westminster High School. The fully functional farm features fields with various crops sold and used to combat food hunger in Orange County. The farm also has farm animals, which the local high schoolers care for and use to compete in the annual competition at the OC fair. The Giving Farm is a part of the Community Action Partnership, which hosts multiple volunteer events across Orange County. During this particular Volunteer Event, ASCE UCI helped pick and package strawberries. Volunteers learned how the strawberries were grown, how to assess quality, and where precisely the strawberries went after packaging.
Sample Strawberry
ASCE UCI Volunteers Andrew, Sean, and Michelle (Left to Right)
About the Author:
Sean is a third-year Civil Engineering Major at the University of California, Irvine. As a member of ASCE UCI and the External Activity Coordinator, he enjoys meeting new people. When Sean is not doing anything for ASCE he is a Project Engineer for UCI Steel Bridge and will be designing as well as fabricating for the upcoming competition in the Spring. Sean can be contacted at asce.uc.irvine@gmail.com.
ASCE UCI at OC YMF Mock Interview Workshop
ASCE UCI students convened at the Mark Thomas office at Irvine to sharpen their interviewing skills. After a quick breakfast and office tour, the workshop students rotated through several industry professionals who gave them a ten-minute practice interview followed by a feedback session. The students also did an exercise where they had to turn one of their weaknesses into a strength in an interview scenario. With their resumes reviewed and skills practiced, students left the workshop better prepared for their next interview!
ASCE UCI members and alumni showing some school spirit!
ASCE UCI General Meeting # 2: Riverside County Flood Control and Water Conservation District
Riverside County Flood Control and Water Conservation District visited the ASCE UCI chapter in the evening to present their company to the student chapter. The members learned about the services the district is responsible for, gained insight into the engineers' day-to-day, and why they loved working there. The district is unique in that they have many in-house engineers and construction staff, unlike consulting firms, who hire them to do the designs. They also described the qualities they look for in interns and how they value technical skills to thrive at the district. We thank them for taking the time to share this valuable information with our members.
All of the general members who attended the meeting with the Riverside County Flood Control and Water Conservation district representatives
ASCE UCI General Meeting # 3: Senior Panel
ASCE UCI hosted six senior panelists to share their experiences at UCI. The panelists included Jerry Cheng, Jose Muniz, Shereen Nima, Almas Jaleel, Emma Duey, and Cedric Perez. The panelists answered several questions from the moderator, ranging from how they have grown at UCI, why they chose civil engineering, to what they can't stand about UCI. Afterward, the panel was opened to the floor to ask questions where they were asked about their internship experiences and how they manage their time. It was a night of insightful advice, laughs, and a warm way to celebrate our outgoing seniors.
Our lovely senior panelists, Jerry, Jose, Shereen, Almas, Emma, and Cedric (left to right), will be missed dearly.
About the Author:
Brian Tran is a second-year Environmental Engineering student at the University of California, Irvine, and is part of the Professional Outreach cabinet at UCI’s student chapter for the 2023-2024 term. Brian enjoys exploring the outdoors, playing videogames with his friends, and running. Brian can be contacted at asce.uc.irvine@gmail.com.
ASCE UCI at Celebrate UCI
ASCE UCI booted at UCI’s annual Celebrate UCI event to meet with prospective students and families and tell them more about the opportunities offered by ASCE, the CEE department, and UCI in general! We had great fun showcasing some of our technical projects, such as Timber Build, Steel Bridge, and Transportation. We want to thank Timber Build and Steel Bridge for building their structures for students to see! We gained a lot of interest from incoming students and look forward to welcoming them to the club this fall.
PSWS 2024 UCI Results
ASCE UCI had the excellent opportunity to compete with our technical projects at the annual Pacific Southwest Symposium (PSWS) this month! This year’s PSWS was hosted at the University of Hawai’i at Manoa and brought ASCE student chapters throughout Southern California. The three-day symposium was an excellent opportunity for students to apply knowledge from courses and network with professionals and other students.
The hard work and efforts of our members at the competition paid off! ASCE UCI placed sixth overall out of fourteen universities that attended PSWS 2024! We are ecstatic for our Transportation Team, which placed 1st, and Timber Design Build, which placed 2nd!
Here are the placings for our other great projects! Technical projects: Steel Bridge (9th), Surveying (6th), Timber Design Build (2nd), Technical Paper (8th), Environmental Design (4th), Transportation (1st), Geowall (DQ). Nontechnical events: Kan Jam (1st), Ulu Maika (5th), Moa Pahe’e (4th), HukiHuki (4th), Basketball (2nd), Soccer (6th), Kickball (4th), Volleyball (5th), Ultimate Frisbee (4th), Dodgeball (5th), and Scavenger Hunt (9th).
We want to thank our conference co-chairs, Saghar Rafiee, Kaitlyn Luong, Carissa Larin, and our Treasurer, Joceline Nguyen, for their hard work throughout the term to plan a great trip for our members.
We are constantly striving to do better, and we look forward to learning more and improving our designs for next year’s PSWS at Pomona!
About the Author:
Michelle is a second-year environmental engineering major at UC Irvine and on the ASCE UCI Professional Outreach Committee for the ‘23-’24 term. Michelle enjoys visiting national parks and sewing. Michelle plans to get a PhD and is currently in a research lab at UCI. Michelle can be contacted at asce.uc.irvine@gmail.com.
CSUF x UCI ASCE Hiking Event
ASCE Student Chapters from UCI and CSUF explore Peter’s Canyon during a Saturday Morning hike. Members were able to interact with other ASCE students from different schools, kicking off the Earth Day weekend.
ASCE members embark on a trail during a hike in Orange County
About the Author:
Cedric Perez is a Senior Civil Engineering undergraduate at the University of California, Irvine, and is currently the Internal Vice President of the ASCE UCI Student Chapter for the 2023-2024 school year. Cedric enjoys spending time with family and friends, playing basketball, and being involved in on-campus organizations. He desires to work in Structural Engineering through Structural Design or Construction Management. Cedric can be contacted at cedricdp@uci.edu.
Pancake & Movie Night Pool Party
ASCE UCI members enjoy the greatness of Tron: Legacy while decorating and customizing their pancakes. Members also dip in the jacuzzi and pool while playing with a water polo ball. Basking in the beautiful Irvine sun, members bond over food, movies, and fun times.
ASCE UCI members view Tron: Legacy while enjoying and awaiting their pancakes.
About the Author:
Tristan Lee is a first-year undeclared undergraduate student at the University of California, Irvine, pursuing switching into an Environmental Engineering major. Tristan is the incoming internal vice president of the ASCE UCI Student Chapter for the 2024-2025 school year. Tristan enjoys spending time with family, playing basketball, and participating in spontaneous activities with friends. Tristan can be contacted at tristcl1@uci.edu.