PSU Magazine Spring 2001

The company doesn't wait for grad– uation to recruit PSU students, ays Williams. "We hire people still in their developmental ski lls stage and take that desire for growth and learning and mold it into our culture." s igning up PSU juniors and seniors fits WRG's cu lture of mostly 25 to 35 year old , Welborn says, but also tends to build loya lty to the company. Only a few of the PSU recruits have left, two to start their own companies. Williams contends that students are also a bit hungrier and eager to learn. "I remember walking down that aisle (at graduation) thinking 'I'm an engi– neer now,' when, in fact, I had no idea what I'd be facing over these last 10 years." Welborn and Williams say the firm isn't necessarily looking for students with the best grades, either. They'll hire a "C" student over an "A" stu– dent, anytime, they say, if the fit with the company and the kills are there. It is not so much the knowledge, but the practical ability they are looking for. That too, probably hearkens back to their PSU experience. "I remember both of them," says Franz Rad, professor and chair of the Department of C ivil Engineering. "They were hard-working and sharp stu– dents. I don't remember them to be in the top of the class, but overall they had an impressive record. They a ked good questions and had a high interest." The WRG story, he says, is one he hears often. "Lots of consulting firms enthusiastically fo llow our graduates. Our problem is not having enough graduates for industry." Rad estimates the school has gradu– ated from 25 to 60 civil engineering students each year over the last 10 years. If the school could double those numbers, most graduates would be snapped up in the Portland area alone. "Industry likes our product and wants to see more," says Rad. He adds that students can file their resumes with the department in their enior year if they need help with job hunt– ing. Few do, he says, because they already have jobs by then. Rad sees the emphasis on real– world engineering practice as one of the keys to the program's popularity. "That's one of our aims-to keep the program design- and practice-oriented. We want to help our student into the practice of what they will be doing for the next 40 years." Also, he says, the word is out about the attitude of most PSU engineering students. "Our students are a little bit more mature and know what they want," ays Rad. Back at WRG, Welborn and William till know what they want. "To build things," says Welborn, and to come to work every day with that "concrete canoe" ense of challenge and enthusia m. But there is one more ingredient that has made WRG Design one of the top-and fastest growing-firms in its field. The company looks for what Engineering alums Darren Welborn (left) and Ben Williams are founding principals of WRGDesign. Welborn calls "people who have a sim– ilar genetic code." He means people with a true passion for mastering and implementing building skills. Like the employee found sleeping under his desk at 3 a.m. Says Williams, he didn't really have to be there. He just wanted to be. D (Steve Dodge is a Portland freelance writer.) SPRING 2001 P U MAGAZINE 17