Name: Laurel Davies
Class Year: 2028
Major: Growth and Structure of Cities
Internship Organization: UC Berkeley Capital Strategies
Internship Title: Physical and Environmental Planning Intern
Location: Berkeley, California
What’s happening at your internship? We would love to hear what kind of work you are doing!
As a planning intern at UCB Capital Strategies, I’m involved in several projects that reflect the varied responsibilities of the university’s architecture office. I work directly with Wendy Hillis, UCB’s Campus Architect, to research the history of planning at the ten UC campuses and investigate how early UC architecture and planning decisions reflected the broader cultural, political, and economic climate of the state.
Visiting the roof of a campus building that is scheduled for renovation in 2027
As a part of this project, I get to explore the University’s special collections archive, reviewing paper documents and correspondence sometimes dating to before 1900. It has been equally exciting to read first-hand accounts of the University’s earliest architectural decisions as it has been to discover silly personal references in memos that pre-date the invention of email.
In addition, I draw on my own design skills in this role to create signage templates for the University’s standardized interior signage guidelines. This task is especially meaningful because it allows me to personally contribute to the improvement of accessibility and wayfinding at UCB: improvement that benefits the physical experience of the campus for all visitors. I’m also responsible for several inventorying initiatives intended to improve the maintenance of campus signage, garbage disposal, and public art installations.
Finally, I accompany members of Capital Strategies Physical Environmental Planning office to their design review meetings and site visits to take notes and experience the day-to-day of architectural project management. Construction sites are much faster-paced than office design work and require different skills – focus, adaptability, organization – and reveal another important side of the industry.
Why did you apply for this internship?
I applied for this internship to gain firsthand exposure to California’s architecture and design industry from the perspective of a practicing professional, complementing the academic foundation I developed through Bryn Mawr’s studio design courses.
The view from the top of the Gateway Building, a new contemporary academic building on campus that will be open for classes this fall
Before beginning my internship search, I conducted several informational interviews with California-based institutional architects and spoke with my studio professors, who also practice architecture in the Philadelphia area. These conversations made it clear that the day-to-day realities of architectural practice differ substantially from the academic studio environment. Wanting to better understand my own career goals while expanding my technical and professional skills, I sought an internship in an architecture firm that would provide opportunities for shadowing, design work, and research.
Was there anything special about how you found this internship?
Securing this internship became a testament to the strength of Bryn Mawr’s coast-to-coast network and the generosity of its faculty. When I first began searching for summer architecture internships, I reached out to my Cities professors for advice on the skills and experiences that would make me a stronger candidate. I expected a few words of guidance, but instead I found mentors who invested personally in my success. Every professor I contacted responded with thoughtful suggestions and encouragement, offering support well beyond what I had anticipated.
A few weeks later, one of my studio professors emailed to tell me that he had spoken on my behalf with an old graduate school friend who was now the Vice Chancellor at UC Berkeley. His recommendation came as a complete surprise. I had asked only for advice, not introductions, so I was both honored and deeply grateful that he was willing to advocate for me in such a meaningful way. Building on that connection, I shared my portfolio with the Vice Chancellor and UC Berkeley’s Campus Architect. About a month later, I was offered my current internship, a position the Campus Architect developed specifically for me after learning about my interests and the goals I hoped to achieve over the summer.
Can you give us three adjectives and three nouns that describe your internship experience?
Adjectives: Independent, Investigative, Informative
Nouns: Design, Development, Project-Management