Brian Loughlin

Learn about engineering internships and how they can benefit your organisation from Brian Loughlin, Regional Manaer NT/ WA at ADG Engineers. Brian's intern was Allison Ma.

How did you advertise the internship opportunity?

CDU Careers Board

Why did you select this particular student for the internship opportunity?

Allison displayed a high level of technical competence and had a clear understanding of where she wanted to take her career in Civil Engineering. What impressed me most, was the extra-curricular activities Allison had pursued including volunteering at RSPCA, Australian Cambodia Collaboration and EA Foodbank. She displayed a passion for helping others which was very aligned with our business’s values. I believed Allison would be a great fit with our Darwin team and that we could provide technical training, professional development on exciting projects and a supportive environment to thrive in the early stages of her career.  

What is your favourite story / memory about this internship?

My favourite story is how Allison’s employment with ADG came about. I met Allison through Engineers Australia Coffee Club Mentoring programme in April 2019 and was highly impressed at our initial meeting. We offered her an internship with ADG, and then based on her performance made an offer of permanent employment as a Graduate Civil Engineer. It’s a wonderful example of Engineers Australia facilitating the connection between students and industry and demonstrates the benefit of participation in such initiatives.

Were you directly involved with the supervision of the student on placement (e.g., mentoring, supervisor)?  If so, did it contribute to your PD?

Not directly, however as a relatively small office of 15 people we did have interaction on a number of projects.

How long does an internship with your organisation normally go for?

4-6 weeks initially on a casual / unpaid basis. Following this, we provide paid undergraduate opportunities for Students which can be anywhere between 6-18 months depending on the progress and timing of their degree.

Does your organisation run a structured internship program at regular intervals, or is it more ad hoc based on business requirements?

We typically provide 1-2 internships for Civil & Structural Engineering students locally in Darwin annually. Nationally, we employ approximately 25 graduates each year who usually come through our internships. We have recently launched the ADG Academy which comprises the ADG Way Graduate Training program for structured technical learning and development and the ADG Graduate Network which focusses on soft skills and connections among our graduate cohort.

What form of support did you receive from the student’s university?

Aside from a high level of training preparing Allison for a career in Engineering, we had little interaction with her University during the internship. We regularly attend the CDU careers fair and post job opportunities on their career board which does enable us to connect with undergraduate and graduate engineers