Leslie Avila is a Senior Construction Science student interning with The Beck Group in Dallas. Avila works closely with the superintendent on the floor on punch list items and scheduling.
Avila has learned a variety of skills during her internship, including confidence and leadership.
“I hope to have gained self-confidence in asking for what is required and needed. At times it’s nerve-wracking being the youngest one on site and having to give tasks to older people.”
– Leslie Avila
North Lobby at the Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, TX
At Gibbs College of Architecture, Avila says everything she learns in classes can be applied to the workforce when she graduates.
“Everything I have learned in school I have applied to my internship, which helps me see that I need to focus the best I can in school so I can connect the dots when I graduate.”
Avila says her favorite part of the program is the ability to work with people and think critically.
“Working together as a whole gets the job done,” she said.
“What I like most is the ability of working with people. I love the critical thinking that is required on the job site.”
Avila has worked on many projects during her time at Gibbs College of Architecture, but her favorite is called “Bid Day.”
“This acts as a real life scenario of what you would need to do during a Bid Day. This showed us all of the work that actual goes into winning a project.”
Mosaic art made in Italy before being cut into parts for shipping then made on-site.
For incoming students, she says going to the career fair and visiting professors during their office hours is the best advice she can give.
“Go to the career fairs as early as possible. You learn so much from internships and it makes you more marketable once you graduate. Also, go to office hours. Professors are more than willing to help when you ask for it.”
Photos provided by Leslie Avila
The Christopher C. Gibbs College of Architecture announces John Harris as Associate Dean for Research ad interim, effective Aug. 25, 2026, until the permanent position is filled.
Gibbs College is pleased to announce the 2026 Gibbs College Faculty & Staff Awards recipients. These individuals were recognized by Dean Butzer during the Gibbs College Back to School Meeting and will be honored during the Celebration Banquet in October. They were nominated by their colleagues via an open nomination process.
Telesis, the Gibbs College of Architecture’s student journal, has been awarded a grant from the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts to support its next two issues, “Pause” (Volume IX) and “React” (Volume X).
