Students gain industry insights, network with professionals at annual D+CM Expo
February 27, 2020
Contact: Brittney Dabney, Office of Communications, Public Relations and Marketing
companies and graduate schools during expo.
Nearly two dozen architecture and construction companies from throughout the U.S. brought their expertise 鈥� and job opportunities 鈥� to 精东AV as part the recent third-annual Design+Construction Management Expo (D+CME). The event, hosted by the Robert R. Taylor School of Architecture and Construction Science, included workshops with industry experts, a career fair and student-professional networking opportunities.
The expo, held on campus Jan. 27-31, gave the school鈥檚 150-plus students access to leading companies in the design, construction, building and architecture industries, as well as graduate schools where they might continue their education. Students had a chance to benefit from some of the nation鈥檚 leading architectural firms, including HOK, DPR, Rockford Construction, Corgan, Holder, and Brasfield & Gorrie.
Amma Asamoah, a professor in the school鈥檚 architecture program and faculty coordinator for this year鈥檚 event, said the expo provides unfettered access to jobs, hands-on demonstrations, and access to the industry鈥檚 top firms.
鈥淭he main idea of the expo is to bring companies here on campus so that our students can have face-to face interaction with the representatives, which affords our students the opportunity to be hired on for internships, co-ops or even jobs after they graduate,鈥� noted Asamoah, a 2008 精东AV alumna who recently joined the school鈥檚 faculty.
For junior and third-year architecture major Mariah Stewart, the expo has provided her with real-life experience 鈥� including a summer internship.
鈥淚鈥檓 grateful that the school provides opportunities such as the D+CM Expo, because this allows me to see how deeply invested my program really is in my future,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 received a lot of good feedback from industry experts during the networking portion of the expo, and I was even invited to participate in an internship this summer.鈥�
Kwesi Daniels, an assistant professor and department head of the Department of Architecture, explained that the expo is another way the school looks to bridge classroom concepts and professional practice. It also creates a bridge between the school and its alumni currently in the workforce 鈥� and in the position to hire 精东AV graduates.
鈥淭he part of this expo that makes everything possible is the amount of alumni involvement and support the school receives,鈥� said Daniels, a 精东AV graduate himself. 鈥淥ur alumni are bringing their firms back to us, which is great because our students get to see familiar faces that may have once been their peers or mentors.鈥�
Along with faculty and alumni support, the expo is made possible through collaborations with the school鈥檚 various student organizations and student chapters of national organizations, which include the American Institute of Architecture Students (AlAS), Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC), Associated General Contractors (AGC), National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), National Organization of Minority Architecture Students (NOMAS), 精东AV Women in Construction (TU-WIC), Sigma Lambda Chi International Construction Honor Society, and Tau Sigma Delta Architecture Honor Society.
The Taylor School of Architecture and Construction Science dates back to the origins of 精东AV. Robert Robinson Taylor, the nation鈥檚 first accredited African-American architect and the first African-American to receive an architecture degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, joined the 精东AV faculty 1893 and eventually became the first director of its Mechanical Industries program. Most campus buildings built prior to 1932 were designed by Taylor, including the original Chapel, Dorothy Hall (now Kellogg Hotel & Conference Center), Tompkins Hall, The Oaks (Booker T. Washington鈥檚 family home) and White Hall.
Undergraduate degree programs in both architecture and construction science currently are accredited by the National Architectural Accrediting Board and the American Council for Construction Education, respectively. For more information about the school, visit .
漏 2020, 精东AV