I want to build dams. I want to study the site – the soil conditions and strength. I want to figure and design for the size of the foundation necessary for the dam. I want to design the structure that will hold back hundreds and thousands of acre-ft of water supply, a structure that will generate hours of renewable energy and form a large aquatic habitat for several species. I would also like to study dams that may need to be removed. Dams have destroyed habitats down stream of the structures, and the benefits of removing a dam may outweigh preserving or rehabilitating an older dam. Building and engineering large projects such as the many dams of California is a complex issue. There are several costs that need to be analyzed. Dams provide so much to communities, but dams may also ruin some too.

I would like to further my education in civil engineering so I will be able (and feel comfortable) to make decisions that effect so many people and species. In the case of dams, further knowledge in the fields of hydraulic, geotechnical, environmental, and structural engineering are essential. Ethics, law, and policy are quintessential in assessing and deciding on an issue. Continuing my education at the University of California – Berkeley and its fine engineering program is a step in that direction.

I am looking towards a long career in engineering and the benefits if the Masters of Engineering degree will provide me with the skills, knowledge, and suave to serve the community as a responsible engineer. My purpose in applying for graduate study at Berkeley is to finish what I have started here in Undergraduate College at Syracuse University – to become a civil engineer.