If you would have told me last summer that I would be interning for a civil engineering firm, I would have laughed. I did not know the first thing about roads, bridges or engineering before I started working; however, that all quickly changed. Thanks to the help of everyone around me here at Carpenter Marty Transportation, I learned more than I ever thought I would.

Although I may have just been a marketing intern, I believe I gained so much more knowledge than most in a similar position. Kristin did an amazing job making sure that everything I did had meaning behind it. There was not a single task I accomplished as an intern here that seemed monotonous. This was not your average “go get my coffee and bagel” internship. From the very beginning, I was working on projects (or tasks) that were going to clients, such as final-project cover sheets, tables of contents, resumes and more.

I was also able to do a variety of assignments I never would have thought of, like going to take photographs of roads and other project sites. This was fun because I was able to get some fresh air while seeing first-hand what our company puts together daily. This made me realize just how much work goes into everything the engineers do and how passionate they are about each and every project on which they work. I will never forget my first conversation with John when I explained how my hometown is getting a “dogbone” double roundabout; his eyes lit up and he asked for pictures when it is completed. After working here for a bit now, I can understand why he had that response — roundabouts can be cool!

Each day at Carpenter Marty Transportation was never the same, which I loved. One day I would be converting a 50-page project write-up from Microsoft to InDesign, and the next I would be planning trivia for our Fun-loving Thursday. Even though I was working with engineers, who tend to be pretty by the book, I still had several chances to be creative. Whether it was putting together a cover sheet with photos I had taken, or putting together an invitation to our summer party, I enjoyed the variety of tasks and looked forward to the next one.

Everyone at Carpenter Marty Transportation is extremely helpful, as well. Whenever I had a question or was confused, there was always someone willing to help and explain things to me. I never felt like just an intern while working here. I was able to talk to everyone in the office, including the principals, and feel both comfortable and appreciated. After talking to my friends who have had internships elsewhere, I found this is not always the case. I was very fortunate to work in such a great environment with kind, interesting people.

This internship showed me that working in the “real world” can be a positive and enriching experience. I am so thankful that I was able to be surrounded by people who want to see me succeed and are willing to help me do so.

Mackenzie Kizer
The Ohio State University
Class of 2020