Our Stories
The Careers on Course: New Graduate Development Program is designed to enable Junior Engineers to perform more effectively across a variety of roles at Irving Shipbuilding.
Through the two-year program, Irving Shipbuilding supports the graduates through a collection of professional development and technical competency learning activities.
The program consists of four six-month rotations to ensure that program participants receive exposure to the various disciplines, departments, and projects. This program aims to develop participants breadth and depth of work experience while meeting their own career goals.
This wave’s five program participants joined ISI after recently graduating with their Bachelor of Engineering from various Atlantic Canadian universities. These participants demonstrated strong academic performance, a desire to excel, strong interpersonal and communication skills, and proven leadership ability.
Now halfway through their first rotation, we caught up with the participants to find out how their experience has been so far.
Ashley Brace
University: Memorial University of Newfoundland
Degree/ field of study: Civil Engineering
Hometown: Mount Pearl, Newfoundland and Labrador
Current team at Irving Shipbuilding: Project Engineering
What drew you to this program? What initially drew me to this program was the opportunity to gain experience in a well-established Canadian industry, while enrolled in a program that was designed to develop my leadership skills as a young professional.
"My experience at ISI so far has been great. I have learned a lot about the business quickly due to the fast-paced environment, which I really enjoy. The Project Engineering department has been very welcoming and supportive as I have settled into my new role. I am very excited to be involved with projects that have allowed me to learn about many of the various stakeholders within the organization."
Kevin Wang
University: Dalhousie University
Degree/ field of study: Mechanical Engineering
Hometown: Moncton, NB
Current team at Irving Shipbuilding: Field Service Engineering Team
What drew you to this program? AOPS and CSC projects are the biggest shipbuilding initiatives and the most complex engineering projects in Canada, and I want to be a part of them.
"So far my experience has been great in first rotation. People here are extremely helpful and I was able to obtain tons of new knowledge of all disciplines on a daily basis. In my current position, I was able to assist Production with day-to-day issues and incorporate design changes into base scope for future ships."
John Macartney
University: Acadia/ Dalhousie
Degree/ field of study: Industrial Engineering
Hometown: Ottawa, ON
Current team at Irving Shipbuilding: Test and Trials
What drew you to this program? The ability to gain experience in four areas of the business within two years. I've always wanted to work on a large scale engineering project while living in Halifax, and I couldn't think of a more perfect place to work.
"My experience at ISI has been both exciting and challenging, where my most notable experience to date was being able to go to sea for Ship 1’s final Sea Trials in July. Since then I’ve been able to watch Ship 2 progress first-hand by performing system handover inspections, and working toward the next major milestone of starting the Main Diesel Engines."
Zach Doiron
University: University of New Brunswick
Degree/ field of study: Civil Engineering
Hometown: Summerside, PEI
Current team at Irving Shipbuilding: Production, Land Level
What drew you to this program? I was excited to have the opportunity to be part of the Careers on Course program. Few junior engineers have the opportunity to step into a structured rotational program coming right out of school. I feel fully supported by the team and know I will be able to develop professionally and personally in the next two years.
"I have learned a ton about the AOPS program in my first three months at the shipyard. Working in production on Ship 2, I’m onboard every day and I now know my way around the entire ship (I did get lost a few times in my first couple weeks). It’s also been great to get to know all the supervisors and learn about trades outside of my comfort zone."
George Yazigy
University: Dalhousie University
Hometown: Truro, NS
Degree/ field of study: Industrial Engineering
Current team at Irving Shipbuilding: Programs – Governance
What drew you to this program? I was intrigued by the new grad program because it provides the structure I need to become a professional engineer while excelling my career at Irving.
"My ISI experience is full of challenging opportunities which ended up being very rewarding. My manager is very supportive and consistently provides me with opportunities to work on difficult projects and demonstrate my capabilities. The culture at Irving is highly collaborative, which fast-tracked the innovation and results of projects to be completed within a short 6-month term."
