As a freshman in the College of Engineering, Olivia Mills had several diverse interests in buildings, art, history, physics, mathematics and sustainability. While preparing for the Entry to a Major Process, she realized that the Department of Multidisciplinary Engineering’s architectural engineering degree offered her the unique opportunity to combine all those interests.
During her first year at Texas A&M University, Mills took an architectural history class, which she thoroughly enjoyed.
"I realized architecture is something I've always been interested in throughout my life," she said. "Architectural engineering stood out the most to me after researching majors."
Mills is interested in building envelopes, preserving historic buildings and forensic engineering. Forensic engineering involves reverse engineering any failures that occur in buildings. Consultant forensic engineering firms help determine what, why and how something went wrong and who is at fault.
Learning about the historical backgrounds of built environments has taught Mills the importance of incorporating the past with the present. "When you enter a community or a building project, and you're trying to make it new and workable, it's imperative to preserve its history as much as possible and its relevance for that community in the past."
True to her major's name, Mills has taken several classes in different engineering disciplines, which allowed her to branch out academically and meet new people. It’s also deepened her appreciation for the smaller, tightly-knit community she's found in her architectural engineering classes.
Because of the smaller classes, our professors know each of us on an individual level and care about us succeeding, which makes forming strong relationships with other students and faculty easier.
"My favorite part of my major is how small it is," Mills said. "We all know each other. Because of the smaller classes, our professors know each of us on an individual level and care about us succeeding, which makes forming strong relationships with other students and faculty easier."
She has also built relationships as the Architectural Engineering Institute – Texas A&M Chapter (AEI) president. Mills previously served as the corporate relations officer and was elected president for the 2023-24 academic year. The Texas A&M chapter offers the ArchE Connect series, which connects students with various companies in the architectural engineering industry.
"It's practical for students because we bring companies to campus for a lecture and interview event," she said. "Several of our student members have gotten internships from those interviews. I've really enjoyed the corporate relations position and interacting with these companies who are very interested in our major. Moving forward, I'm excited for my new role as president."
Mills spent this summer in Houston, Texas, interning with Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc., a forensic engineering consulting firm specializing in architecture, engineering and material science and building envelope engineering.