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Structuring success: Engineering student pursues dream career through internships, co-ops

Aug/1/2016 | POSTED BY Marisol Ramirez Ellen Vehige, senior civil engineering major, poses while conducting an oil containment inspection at Ameren’s Latham Substation. It’s one of several internships she’s had as a student in the UMSL/WUSTL Joint Undergraduate Engineering Program. (Photo courtesy of Ameren)

Already locally famous at 14 years old for her 7-by-7-foot replica of Busch Stadium, some might guess Ellen Vehige would become an architect.

That guess is in line with those of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and former KTVI (Channel 2) host Tim Ezell, both of whom featured Vehigeâs feat built of construction paper and tiny black coffee straws.

In fact, Vehige, now an Opportunity Scholar at the University of MissouriâSt. Louis, has her sights set on structural engineering as she enters her senior year.

Sheâs a civil engineering major in the UMSL/Washington University in St. Louis Joint Undergraduate Engineering Program, which sheâs finding to be unique in its benefits.

âMy favorite thing about the program is being able to complete courses at two great universities,â Vehige said. âItâs really neat to be at both a public and a private university, gaining experiences at each and using all the facilities at Wash U. Plus, itâs convenient because they are very close to each other. Itâs a top-notch program academically, and the price and location set it apart from other universities.â

Vehige has found that she loves all things structure-related in her coursework.

âI enjoy determining forces and moments created by loads on structures and seeing what a structureâs capabilities are,â Vehige said.

She most enjoyed calculus and physics in high school at Fort Zumwalt North in OâFallon, Missouri.

âIâve always liked solving puzzles. I love challenges and find it really rewarding to solve problems.â

This summer, Ameren is putting her skills to use. Vehigeâs internship there has her helping the transmission line design group.

âIâm using a lot of statics structural design concepts that Iâve learned in school to determine forces and how structures will react to loads on them,â she said. âWhen Iâm designing transmission lines, I have to consider various load combinations such as radial ice on cables, wind loads on poles and wires, and if a wire breaks, the distribution of loads must be considered. We design conservatively.â

Vehige also gets to do a lot of hydrology field work for Ameren, proactively monitoring oil containment at substations.

âIf there is an oil spill, I look for how quickly spilled oil can get to a water feature and what actions can be taken to prevent spilled oil from reaching that feature,â she said.

âAmeren is really big on the environment. Theyâre always looking for new, cleaner energy, making sure that the environment is taken care of. Theyâre doing their part to be responsible.â

Vehige checks the OSV valves, which act as oil/water separators, so that if ever there is an oil spill, the oil is siphoned off into a container for collection. She also assesses substationsâ drafts and the topography using Google Earth to determine the direction of flow.

Itâs not her first internship or co-op experience either. All three years of her undergraduate career thus far, sheâs worked at internships or co-op positions offered to her through the Joint Engineering Programâs community partnerships.

âThere are many opportunities here in St. Louis for civil engineers,â Vehige said. âOne of the main reasons I chose the UMSL/WUSTL Joint Program was the location. I am able to stay close to home, participate in professional engineering clubs in St. Louis and network with St. Louis engineering companies. The opportunities are really right in front of you.â

Vehigeâs sampled her fair share of such opportunities too. Sheâs helped the City of OâFallonâs Public Works Department with water and sewer operations, Lochmueller Group with traffic engineering and the United States Army Corps of Engineers with levee inspections.

âI knew civil [engineering] was so broad and wide, I really wanted to fine tune, which area I should pursue,â Vehige said. âSo I made sure I was trying all the different areas open to me â traffic, structures, water, etc. And then I also could choose between working for a government agency, investor-owned or private company. Itâs just great that I had options available to try.â

Still, Vehige is set on her first love â structural engineering. Sheâs hoping to stay in St. Louis, close to the home, university, city and community that she says has offered her so much. Short URL: http://blogs.umsl.edu/news/?p=63189



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