Arch. Design Major Emily Aune’s Internship in Germany

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Originally uploaded by Stanford Architecture

Last summer Arch. Design Major Emily Aune did an internship in Düsseldorf, Germany. Check out her report and photographs!

Emily’s report on her internship:
Check out the Flickr Photoset here.

ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN INTERNSHIP REPORT
Emily Aune: eaune@stanford.edu
MAJOR/MINOR: Architectural Design / Art History
HOST: Ingenhoven Architekten GmbH: http://www.ingenhovenarchitekten.eu, http://www.ingenhovenarchitekten.de
LOCATION: Düsseldorf
DURATION: 3 months in Summer 2007.
DESCRIPTION: Architectural Design.

I spent the Summer of 2007 living in Düsseldorf, Germany and working for the architecture firm Ingenhoven Architekten. I was placed mostly on small teams of about 5-8 people, working on international design competitions. I was given a specific part of the design to focus on (i.e. retail areas) and then I created drawings pertaining to that part of the building. I sat with the team during design meetings and was able to share my own opinions about the design, and then I updated my drawings when design changes occurred (which was frequently). Later in the process I also created presentation drawings, such as elevations and sections, and diagrams showing site circulation, and building-use breakdowns. I worked with an Autocad program called Microstation, as well as with Adobe Illustrator and InDesign.
The designs I worked on were for tall, glass office buildings, though the firm was also working on designs for college campuses, train stations, and other types of structures. The firm was very environmentally conscious and incorporated energy-saving design aspects in all of their work. At times, my job also included researching products such as rooftop wind turbines and contacting the companies that built them. My English was also frequently taken advantage of; I was asked to edit important emails and sometimes make phone calls to associates in English speaking countries.
Working at Ingenhoven, I gained a high level of proficiency in the CAD program Microstation. I also learned what goes into participating in a major design competition and saw how a team is organized for one. But maybe most importantly, this experience showed me I am capable of adapting to my surroundings and thriving in a foreign work environment.
I found the internship to be extremely personally rewarding. Seeing my own drawings and ideas enter the designs was incredible. I was also able to form close relationships with my coworkers, and had many discussions about how they saw the profession, how they saw Germany and the US, and what they thought I should do with the next few years of my life. My coworkers often invited me out on weekends and evenings so I feel I got to know them well. Mostly due to this social environment, my German skills also improved exponentially. I was able to really feel comfortable living and working in Germany after only six months, and I am fairly certain I will return in the future.