Since 1876, Texas A&M University has produced top-tier engineers who have gone into the workforce to impact our community, country and world. For the last 146 years, Aggie engineers have been key leaders in the engineering industry with their leadership, integrity and unwavering commitment to achieving excellence. Former civil and environmental engineering student Sarah Scott ‘08 is no stranger to these values as she was named one of Engineering News-Record (ENR) Texas & Louisiana's Top Young Professionals of 2023.
Each year, ENR recognizes the best and brightest engineers in the architectural engineering and construction field under 40 who have demonstrated exceptional leadership and service throughout their careers.
Scott has been with Kimley-Horn, one of the nation’s premier planning and design consultants, for 12 years at their Dallas office. Since starting with the company, Scott has grown as a leader and engineer. She is now a senior project manager focusing on site civil and land development for private sector clients.
Scott always knew that she was destined to go into the engineering field. From an early age, the idea of math and building things intrigued her and sparked an interest she was able to experience everywhere she went.
“Math came naturally to me, so I always knew I wanted to do something in the math realm,” Scott said. “I also loved architecture and building things. My favorite thing to do in a new city is to walk around and just look at how everything was developed.”
With those two passions in mind, Scott found the best way to combine all her interests into one field of study would be to pursue a civil engineering degree.
“It’s a major where you actually get to design things that are built,” she said. “It’s very hands-on.”
Even though two University of Texas graduates raised her, Scott decided to pursue her passions at Texas A&M in the Zachry Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. The Aggie network and togetherness of College Station made the decision easy.
“Both schools have really strong engineering programs,” Scott said. “But the atmosphere, friendliness and welcomeness of Texas A&M are what I loved about it. The small-town feel and the bubble of 50,000 friends.”
Throughout her time at Texas A&M, Scott took full advantage of all the opportunities to get involved on and off campus. From joining a sorority to organizing the career fair for the Student Engineers Council, she used every opportunity to better herself as a person, engineer and Aggie — something that can’t be taught in a classroom.
“It was fun to be a part of very different things,” Scott said. “Sorority life was very different from the Student Engineers Council, so you get a broad range of experiences. That’s where I learned time management and organization skills, how to work with a team and delegate responsibilities, and I even learned how to do public speaking.”
Now in her career at Kimley-Horn, Scott takes all the lessons she learned into her everyday tasks. While no two days are the same, she has used her Aggie experience to become a leader in her field. Although her reason for receiving this award derived from her hard work, determination and commitment to excellence, Scott finds the most affirmation from the clients she serves.
“I get the most validation from a client wanting me to work on their next project,” she said. “It helps me know that I’m doing a good job, that I am a good engineer and on the right path.”