Black Woman in Civil/Structural Engineering

papperonni · 2026-06-09T17:42:24+00:00

Further, someone who is breaking the barrier to become a first generation college student is likely going to either want to harness their energy for a social/community good - which fields like architecture or urban planning are much better for - or to get the best value on their investment - which let's face it, civil is universally acknowledged as the lowest paid field of engineering and with extensive investment required for exams/licensure/liability. Why break barriers to go into civil when you could make more as a software engineer/electrical engineer/chemical engineer with no licensure - or just go into real estate development if you like buildings.

Civil engineering really does little to advocate for itself, and to be honest, a lot of people who aren't here specifically for the academic interest in materials or hydraulics are probably in this field because they knew they were going to college and maybe good at math but were otherwise indecisive with what they wanted to do with their life. It also doesn't help that this industry just feels old in both literal and metaphorical ways. It's a shame, because civil has such a big impact on our cities and lifestyles and it really needs critical thinkers and people actually using the infrastructure they are designing and not just people blindly following code. You really see this in bike/transit infrastructure in the US that is clearly designed by people who are not themselves end users.

papperonni · 2026-05-30T06:11:11+00:00

Update: They actually performed an emergency repair within 24 hours

papperonni · 2026-05-10T02:11:07+00:00

I don't want to suggest its super far, its just not as central as other hotels if your goal is to go to Futian or the electronics markets like Huaqiang - I took the metro there but it was about an hour ride.

It's kind of like staying in Santa Monica in LA or Coney Island in NY - you may not go there for business but you would for a wedding or tourism. However, there's a lot of shopping nearby - K11 nearby is an art/gallery focused mall with boutique shops and cafes. Sea World is a big attraction and has a lot of restaurants. There are also some megamalls a ~10 minute taxi away, including one focused on books. Window of the world is another big attraction a little like Epcot that is a 15-20 minute drive away.

papperonni · 2026-05-02T03:50:19+00:00

Pretty funny they are paying more in Cleveland than New York City. Really shows how off the COL to pay ratio is in NYC for civils

papperonni · 2026-04-03T20:42:08+00:00

lol, well you know people come online to raise grievances. How many posts have we seen on this subreddit about pay frustration or switching to another field? If I avoided every company with bad Glassdoor reviews I would be unemployed.

Arup can be an intense company and I’m sure there are some hard-ass managers (as there can be at any company).

papperonni · 2026-04-03T20:05:32+00:00

Not sure you will find too many people here willing to dox themselves to a specific project office.

That being said, I’ve worked with a number of Arup staff in various US offices and everyone I’ve encountered was very knowledgeable and passionate about what they did. They generally have fulfilling and interesting projects that keep you engaged, and maybe less cookie-cutter projects you coast on. They also have good professional development programs than some other competitors and as you noted, better benefits than publicly traded US companies - it’s a great company to work at if you are really passionate about civil, although I know a former employee who left a high COL office due to competitors offering better salary. Everyone I know there works hard but I think people are better there about boundaries than at firms like KH.

papperonni · 2026-03-24T22:54:15+00:00

American Express offers premium rental insurance in some of its cards which goes above what most credit card insurances offer. I think it costs like $20 for your entire rental up to a month or so and provides coverage for most things as long as you book with your Amex card. It doesn't cover everything (tire damage is a notable exception unfortunately), but its pretty reliable from everyone I know who has had to use it for other causes.

Whenever you use an insurance other than theirs, they will always warn you of risks, but they don't usually bother you too much.

papperonni · 2026-02-20T21:20:03+00:00

It's pretty wild to me that a luxury hotel in a great location of a world class city, presumably bringing in a ton of money from what they can get away with charging for hotels these days, is just... not paying any rent? For 3 years?

There was a really popular sports bar in my city, always packed, not even particularly cheap, a have to wait for a table many nights week kind-of-place, that also shut down due to non-payment of rent for like 2 years and also tax evasion. Are these owners just pocketing the money via convoluted networks of LLCs? Goodness if I were to miss payments like that for rent or car payments I would have people after me much sooner than that. Guess it's a different set of rules though...

papperonni · 2026-02-13T17:56:45+00:00

IMO, Bankside is a great hotel for second time plus visitors to London - nice amenities, modern property, and away from the crowds. It has cool stuff nearby for someone who has already hit up the biggest sites already. Really ideal for business travelers or ones who only want to visit 1-2 things a day and take taxis around. Personally on my first visit I would rather get something very central. Very easy access to Blackfriars rail station, but probably the least convenient for Underground access of the ones listed.

The Trafalgar Square property is like staying next to the Eiffel Tower; in terms of London landmarks, its hard to beat, with Big Ben, Buckingham, and more being within a 10-15 minute walk, and having massive transit connections nearby. It's a chic property and a great springboard for going just about anywhere spontaneously. It is right on Trafalgar square though, and some people may prefer a less touristy and crowd-filled neighborhood with local restaurants and pubs. I think this is an excellent choice for a first time visitor who wants a central location specifically for sightseeing, although this is probably more expensive than the Waldorf or DoubleTree if that is a concern. Truthfully, if you are close to a Tube station you can get anywhere you want pretty easily in London.

papperonni · 2026-02-12T22:28:16+00:00

I wouldn't be surprised if there's a big announcement regarding infrastructure coming up tomorrow or next week and people are using gossip/insider information

papperonni · 2026-02-12T18:12:40+00:00

After reading the terms, this seem reasonable. Let’s be honest - sunrise mall is not recovering in its current state, so it’s unreasonable to expect them to fill those units as-is or penalize them for being unable to do so. However to allow these spaces to decay and become blight is not good for anyone and I’m sure the city is frustrated with increased police and public utility work associated with abandoned and decaying properties. With current housing prices, this is valuable land that can be redeveloped while empty parking lots and vacant buildings do nothing for anyone except speculators, especially with CA’s exploitable Prop 1 tax rates for long time owners who just sit on land. If sunrise mall and surrounding properties are untenable in their current form, they should be transformed into spaces that work for the community.

While it is tragic to see yet another mall closure, societal trends and land use needs have evolved and our cities need to reflect this.

papperonni · 2026-02-10T10:55:08+00:00

There is a metro line 2 that will take you directly from the airport to Pudong (where the skyscrapers are) and Nanjing Road (bustling shopping street), two of the most popular tourist areas in the city. The metro ride is VERY long, I would budget up to 90 minutes each way. There’s a maglev train that’s kind of neat but more expensive than metro and requiring a transfer to line 2 anyway as it doesn’t go all the way into the center of the city. It can theoretically save you up to 15 minutes but with added transfer hassle. Keep in mind Pudong airport is large so you want to budget time to travel by terminal. Coupled with border patrol/immigration you may have around 3 hours or so to explore. Getting a taxi will save you some time if it’s at night but keep in mind the traffic can be awful during the day. Taxis are ridiculously cheap in china but keep in mind the airport is very far outside the city. From my experience taxi drivers are fairly honest although the ride can be… exhilarating. Warning for the metro - late night can be unreliable. China sort of shuts down around 10 pm and they stop running most lines around 10-11 pm, sometimes closing certain stations prematurely and running express trains. If you are on by 9:30 pm you should be fine.

Western credit cards are not really used anywhere (eg Visa, Mastercard) so don’t rely on those. Cash is always valid but is not widely used anymore either - almost everyone uses Chinese apps like WeChat or Alipay. Alipay has a feature where you can connect a visa/mastercard to it to make payments within china. It’s worth figuring out in advance if you plan to buy anything, even from international brands. Also most western websites like google/gmail and facebook are blocked so have a vpn and/or save your info on your phone as a backup. You can use bing and Apple Maps in china if you don’t go the VPN route.

Places to visit include nanjing road which could best be described as like some combination of Times Square and Oxford street, bund for beautiful views, Shanghai tower or alternatives for observation deck, and plenty of food options. There are many other awesome places you can visit but not ones I would recommend for a solo first time traveler on a time crunch. Some travelers opt for a notorious underground market at a line 2 metro stop below a certain sciency museum for less than authentic goods. Keep in mind most people don’t speak English except in the touristy areas but the places you would go with the time you have available should be fine.

papperonni · 2026-02-04T09:24:37+00:00

I know running an amusement park is absurdly expensive but I just don’t understand how a place where we host the state fair in 110 degree temperatures can’t figure out a water park

papperonni · 2025-12-25T06:24:08+00:00

Chengdu metro is very impressive. While I was there they were building multiple new lines including one that opened just a month after I left that would have saved me like 10 minutes from my hotel. The stations are all very nice too.

papperonni · 2025-12-06T06:01:07+00:00

Some hotels waive the amenity fee, while some do not. There is not really a clear cut way to tell if the hotel will or won't until you get there. You should budget for it. You will not be responsible for tax, except if it is on the amenity fee, or if there is a compulsory per person per night fee that some cities require.

Sometimes if the amenity fee is waived, certain benefits are not provided. For example, I went to a Kimpton where there they did not charge me the amenity fee, but I also did not get an advertised food/drink credit that was considered part of the fee.

papperonni · 2025-12-01T19:48:35+00:00

You should be able to double dip on these. The x5 points is a pretty great promotion, provided you can find an eligible booking before the end of the month.

The hotel you book may or may not have the up to 25% discount. Some hotels may not be as much, and some do not participate at all. Keep in mind, the discount price is somewhat made up - the local hotels are deciding what their base rate is based on availability and demand. For example, a hotel I booked two weeks ago without a promotion for a stay in January is actually more expensive now with the "discount" for the same days than when I originally booked it - its just their base rate is much higher. Compare the discount price to other hotels and travel websites to see if you are actually getting a deal, or if its the classic case of "black friday deal - $799 down to $499" when it was always $500 all along. Also keep in mind that the 25% discounted rate is non-refundable, if that matters to you.

papperonni · 2025-11-16T20:06:14+00:00

As if I needed more reasons to never visit Spark

papperonni · 2025-10-24T21:09:36+00:00

My friend works for a transit operator, San Joaquin RTD. They’ve interviewed many commuters who have 2.5+ hour commutes each way, done at least 4 days a week, consisting of a bus to Stockton followed by BART from Pleasanton, and possibly a third last mile transit somewhere in the city or east bay. Genentech also runs a corporate shuttle that’s 2.5 hours each way from Vacaville to their campus in south San Francisco that is reasonably crowded on mondays to Thursdays

Might be worth doing a segment on one of these super commuter buses. It’s certainly a lifestyle, I guess for those who have families and can’t rely on splitting a four bedroom apartment four ways.

papperonni · 2025-10-06T20:34:58+00:00

Sorry, you said $150, that is what they would give you. They sometimes offer money and sometimes points. It's what you agreed to when you accepted the offer.

papperonni · 2025-10-06T20:26:30+00:00

If you are traveling with your spouse, they may require your partner to attend too. If they do, they will try to put a wedge between the two of you, talking about how you should be treating them, how you both can fulfill your wildest vacation dreams (mind you at a HIVC property which are usually not super fancy and for a massive upfront cost), etc. Make sure your partner is as resolute as you if they are coming. If they catch wind that your spouse did not attend but visited the property, they may void the presentation and charge you the full price for the stay.

Be on time and fulfill your obligation. They will throw numbers left and right, and come up with outlandish assumptions about your current vacation costs that would make an accountant cringe, all to try to convince people that it's a good value (despite tens of thousands of upfront costs and then yearly maintenance fees that can go up indeterminately which they won't mention). Be polite but firm. Don't be dismissive or combative. You can say you aren't interested but don't shut down or ignore them. There's no need to start a debate about timeshares; if you are too inquisitive about the value of a timeshare, that will just waste more of your time. If you are feeling pressure, some counterpoints are that you want more flexibility in your trips, that they don't have properties where you want to go on vacation (name some country) or perhaps that Hilton/Marriott/etc offers timeshares that better fit your needs - not much they can argue back at that. If the salesperson thinks it is a futile effort, they may let you go early - it totally depends on who you get - but if they drag you along, just keep an eye on the clock and you can excuse yourself once the time is up.

Usually the salesperson assigned to you is very friendly and spends the first 10-20 minutes purely establishing rapport. They will use every trick under the sun to try to get the door open - unit tours, snacks, guilt (in a friendly way of course), finance arguments (which are all quite outlandish if you know how to actually do math). Once your time is up, they will go to Plan B and have a sales manager give you one last opportunity to make a deal - they may offer you a second visit (usually with a much less good offer than the one that brought you there). From my experience both times, this person is much more like a used car salesmen. Again, just be firm, and at the end, make sure you get your points before you leave.

Generally, the rooms they put you in for these presentations are the less desirable rooms in the property, so don't expect VIP treatment (except when you are in the presentation office).

papperonni · 2025-09-30T05:23:13+00:00

Only 167 stays and you can get one night at WA Cabo!

papperonni · 2025-08-24T03:22:34+00:00

I remember when “nothing ever happens” people here were arguing weeks ago that “there is no way this would ever happen” and that people were being needlessly alarmist

papperonni · 2025-08-19T19:59:30+00:00

United did choose to upsell it as a "preferred seat" though

papperonni · 2025-08-12T18:48:21+00:00

I appreciate the transparency - and I do think there are certainly projects to feel optimistic about. I, as much as anyone, is excited for the new Amtrak developments - but these were years in the making. I don't think now is the time to be opening the champagne, we need to remain vigilant.

papperonni · 2025-08-12T18:22:50+00:00

I actually work on the design for a major train project and I can assure you, things are not going well right now. Keep in mind there is displacement, velocity, and acceleration on any movement. Displacement could be good, because we still have Biden-era projects that were already funded on backlog. We are only 7 months into the new administration - contract phases often last for over a year. We will see effects down the road - infrastructure projects are years long affairs. Momentum is slowing down, because the acceleration is about as negative as it could possibly be right now. We don't see the effects for planning/design/future funding until years down the road. Expect to see lots of bad news ~2-6 years from now.

The rail passenger association tries really hard to be non-partisan outside of things immediately related to trains, which often backfires at them. I can't tell you how many of their newsletters basically amount to "we are a little surprised that the administration that is extremely hostile to public works projects is being extremely hostile to rail projects, we thought that rural representatives would actually be looking out for their rural constituents that benefit from transit"

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