My SAHC year: 1 day at a time
Spring 2023 and I had just finished my undergraduate degree in Architectural Conservation and Sustainability Engineering at Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada. Finally done, but with head full of knowledge and a piece of paper to prove it, but still somehow, a billion questions and feeling a bit lost. My undergrad had given me a lot, with First; a strong understanding of the fundamentals of structural engineering, and Second; exposure to the field of conservation engineering and cultural heritage. But, with half of my time consumed by a pandemic, a lack of true hands-on experience, and the desire to still learn more as I’ve had only just dipped my toe in the field of conservation engineering, I felt there was more I could do. With this, I walked across the stage at my graduation ceremony for my bachelor’s degree, and two and half months later I was in Portugal ready to start grad school.
In the rainy and charming historic city of Guimarães, Portugal, the academic year began with intensive lectures, lab work, site visits, assignments, and presentations. You truly got it all, and fast. The first two weeks, I think most of my classmates, including myself, were feeling overwhelmed, thinking “what did we get our selves into?”. However as the weeks passed, we soon figured out how to handle the course load, relying on one another as we learned to work together. From then on, we began to truly appreciate what we were learning and the people teaching it.
The numerous and knowledgeable professors, supervising PhD students, and lab technicians of the SAHC program are some of the most experienced and passionate in their respective fields. From these lecturers not only did we learn, in a broad sense, how cultural heritage and structural analysis/design work in tandem, but we got into the intricacies of each topic we were introduced to.
One month covering the practical hands-on process of visual inspections, the next month learning about earthquake-resistant design in buildings through seismic behaviour and structural dynamics. Interspersed with day trips exploring the old houses of Porto and walking across the roof of the Palacio da Bolsa, or afternoons spent in the laboratory. The diverse 6 coursework modules, along with the major integrated group project, allowed us to apply the knowledge and skills we learned in class with the chance to work with real structures and materials.
My year was a peculiar one, with only 12 people in the program. The dozen of us came from a few countries, with 3 from Canada, 3 from Belgium, 2 from Italy, 1 from the Philippines, 1 from Pakistan, 1 from Afghanistan, and 1 from the US/Mongolia. You experience the good and the bad together as a group (when you spend 24/7 with each other), and together we found a balance of managing the coursework, learning with and from one another, all while enjoying the well-deserved breaks in between.
Whether we were working quietly on our laptops spread about the room, playing a card game at the back table, having a combined American/Canadian Thanksgiving dinner, singing some karaoke and exchanging secret Santa gifts, climbing some scaffolding on a class field trip, sitting in for quiet movie night, sprinting between university buildings to get out of the rain, or even on those few occasions when we were ready to fight one another over some homework, I would 100%, without a doubt, do it all again. These people become your family away from home, and SAHC wouldn’t be the program it is without it.
Following the coursework portion of the program, the twelve of us dispersed to the various universities in Barcelona, Prague, Padova, and Guimarães to complete our dissertations. For me, I had the chance to attend UPC in Barcelona, where I completed a dissertation related to laboratory tensile testing of mortar, and bricks. It was interesting to try something I had never done before, specifically research into material science, with full weeks of lab work and getting to work hands-on with laboratory equipment.
Reflecting on my SAHC journey, it was definitely a combination of eye-opening, grueling, and, rewarding all in one, but it was undeniably worth it. My one-year at the master’s program is something I never could have anticipated, and in return, I have formed long-lasting friendships, developed a new appreciation for cultural heritage and existing buildings, and learned more than I ever could have imagined.
Considering everything a year later, as I am almost 5 months into my first job as an engineer in training at an engineering firm in New York City, the knowledge and skills I gained in SAHC are fundamental in my day-to-day work. Allowing me to have strong foundations going into my job, as someone who now works in building investigation, condition assessment, and structural analysis and design of existing structures.
SEE ALSO: What is like to be a SAHC student?
