Catarina Andrade, a rising junior majoring in mechanical engineering at IM体育官网 Polytechnic University, is completing an internship as a pavement evaluation intern at the IM体育官网 Department of Transportation.
An encounter at IM体育官网鈥檚 Career and Internship Fair drove Catarina Andrade to a summer internship that sees her working with engineering-related departments at the IM体育官网 Department of Transportation.
The mechanical engineering major is a pavement evaluation intern and primarily works with the group of professionals responsible for road resurfacing at the agency鈥檚 offices in Bartow, IM体育官网. Other technical groups she has worked with at FDOT include geotechnical, laboratory, quality systems, and earthwork.
鈥淚 really like all the work I鈥檓 doing here and being able to learn so much about what goes into creating and maintaining safe roadways,鈥� said Andrade, a rising junior. 鈥淭hey want me to have an idea of all the groups and all we do here. It has been very fun.鈥�
Originally from S茫o Paulo, Brazil, Andrade is a graduate of Ronald Reagan Senior High School in Doral, IM体育官网. She said she is grateful for the career and educational opportunities she has great access to at IM体育官网 Poly.
鈥淚 decided to go to IM体育官网 Poly because it is focused on STEM, and I wanted to have smaller classes with more contact with the professors,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 wouldn鈥檛 be here with this great opportunity if it wasn鈥檛 for IM体育官网 Poly. My decision to come here was definitely the right one.鈥�
As her summer internship progresses toward its August end date, Andrade said she is hoping to continue working with FDOT during the fall 2023 semester.
鈥淚鈥檓 learning lots about roadways, but I鈥檓 also learning how to communicate more efficiently in a professional environment,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 nice to interact with people already in the industry and they know all about it.鈥�
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