With students returning to university this month, we thought we’d catch up with our youngest Trainee QS, Jodi Renwick as she embarks upon her first year of University.
Jodi Renwick is studying part-time at Glasgow Caledonian University and is enrolled on the BSc (Hons) Quantity Surveying course. Her first day is on 23rd September and she is looking forward to getting stuck in. She tells us: “I’m excited to start university and I can’t wait to meet others who are studying the same course. I’m looking forward to being able to use knowledge I learn in university within the workplace, allowing me to connect ideas, and I think it will also help to break up my working week.”
Having selected the part-time course, Jodi’s course will take 5 years. She will attend University one day per week and spend the rest of the week working in Doig+Smith’s Edinburgh Office.
What is it like working in the office?
I am really enjoying it so far. Everyone has made me feel very welcome and I feel really supported. So far, I have completed a variety of tasks such as calc checking valuations and bills.I recently accompanied Jack onto site to complete a valuation that was interesting to see how the work out on site in assessed within the office.
I have been taking measurements for costing various items and I have been ensuring all drawing registers are kept up-to-date. I’ve also shadowed other colleagues while they are creating cost plans and tenders, and I’ve been working on BCIS to complete feasibility checks on jobs, to benchmark them against one another.
Tell us about how you came to work for Doig+Smith?
I always knew I wanted to work while studying at university as I felt I would learn best this way. With this option, I can gain knowledge at university and put into practice within a workplace, so when I saw the job opportunity come up at Doig+Smith I applied straight away as it was exactly what I was looking for. Since both my dad and brother work within the construction industry, I had heard of Doig and Smith before and was aware of some of the major projects they had worked on. This appealed to me as every job was different.
Why did you choose to embark upon a career in Quantity Surveying?
In school I was very interested in maths and graphics which are both subjects linked to quantity surveying in some way. I also like the element of problem solving in quantity surveying as I love a challenge and the satisfaction of when it is solved.
We wish Jodi and all the other first year students best of luck for starting university next week! We’ll catch up with Jodi again in a few weeks to hear how she is getting on.