By: Avery Cheeseman
During this past career exploration day, I ended up going on the field trip to the Metropolitan Council. It was a lovely field trip, and I even ended up meeting up with an employee there who I had previously chatted with at a career fair on campus. This field trip experience was really informative and also a great way to connect with other students who had similar career aspirations as I did. There was a wide range of people who went with me on the field trip, which was definitely a hidden positive. I am an environmental studies major, so being able to interact with other people who are interested in environmentally focused work from other majors was such a cool experience, and I ended up actually making more connections within the Augsburg community.
As for the field trip itself, we arrived at the water treatment facility and first discussed some of the different job opportunities as well as career pathways available through the Metropolitan Council. We met with our guide, who chatted about her work within the Metropolitan Council and how her undergraduate degree led to her current full-time job at the plant. After that, we ended up going on a tour, which was a great way to learn more about wastewater treatment and also to chat with our career guide and ask questions about her experiences. While walking around, I got to ask a lot of questions about specific areas of the plant, and also got advice from the career guide when it comes to internship applications and opportunities. If you are a student who is looking to find a summer internship, going on a field trip like this is an absolute must. It’s a great way to learn about open internship positions and what these positions are exactly looking for.
Looking back at this experience a few weeks later, I think it’s clear that taking the opportunity to go on a career trek like this was a great way to find work and promote myself. It’s also a great way to actively ask questions and engage with people who are in the field that you are interested in entering. I feel like a big positive of this experience is that you learn about opportunities that you never even thought you would be interested in. I learned quite a bit more about lab-related opportunities that this plant offers. I didn’t even know that they were hiring for lab-related interns, so this was a great thing to learn. I also think that taking the opportunity to talk with everyone around you during this experience is another big thing that I took away and recommend that anyone who is going on a future career trek field trip should do. You really get the opportunity to engage with so many students and also professionals alike. Both of these groups of people will eventually be your peers. Taking the opportunity to get to know both of these groups of people while in college is a really great opportunity to have and will definitely help set you up for success! Don’t be afraid to strike up a conversation!
Capacity: 251 million gallons per day
Sewer pipes to facility: 389 miles