Victor had his confidence boosted

Victor Drevskich applied for the Architectural Technology and Construction Management programme at KEA with a student’s cap and not a craft background in his backpack. This initially made him insecure when he was going to do his internship at the consulting engineering firm Focus2:

"I was quickly pushed out of my own comfort zone by working with installation, but learned just as quickly that it is my own doubts more than anything else that hold me back. After six months at Focus2, I came out the other side with a richer perspective and the idea that everything can be solved if you keep a cool head. I jumped into a business with no knowledge or understanding of anything installation technical, far away from the school's safe confines in an industry I didn't know if I would continue in. However, the internship staff taught me very quickly that you can usually do more than you think - and if you have any doubts, you ask," says Victor Drevskich.

And it may actually be very beneficial to have an upper secondary school background:

"With his upper secondary school background, he has a great advantage in speech and writing and has a large theoretical backpack with him. And yes, he is a little challenged in the practical area, but he has picked it up. Victor has had the opportunity to try many different things from design, tender documents to building management and defect inspections. He has tried the whole lot and has actually been able to perform all the tasks. He is very competent and, when in doubt, he has approached the task in a very thorough and methodical manner. We have greatly appreciated his drive and commitment," says Thomas Hyldgaard, manager of Focus2, who is generally very enthusiastic about Architectural Technology and Construction Management students:

"We have had interns for the past 10 years and we have also had engineering interns, but have gone back to pretty much only having interns from the Architectural Technology and Construction Management programmes. Architectural Technology and Construction Management students have more drive. It is easier to give them a task that they spend time on themselves, studying intensely and finding solutions."

During the internship, Victor Drevskich has been involved in design and, with a focus on installation and construction technology, has been part of the construction management of century old housing estates as well as new buildings in Copenhagen. And what he might have lacked in construction-technical experience, he makes up for in BIM and Excel.

"Focus2 has completely turned my world upside down as an Architectural Technology and Construction Management student. Although I have no real technical background, the company has certainly brought me on a par with my technically experienced fellow-students. I am therefore eternally grateful to them."

And this was also noted in the jury:

"Both sides have gone wholeheartedly into the internship. The company has been willing to spend time thoroughly explaining to Victor the technical details of an area that he did not already know about. And Victor has been engaged and interested in familiarising himself with the subject and finding solutions to the tasks the company has given him.
Victor has contributed to the production and has produced very concrete results – he has been part of the profession."

Victor and Focus2 are one of five nominees for the KEA Internship of the Year award. We'll announce all five nominees in the coming days. The winner of KEA Internship of the Year will be announced on 22 April.

Unfortunately, the national competition Business Internship of the Year has been cancelled due to Corona.

The jury consists of:

Hans Henrik Ter-Borch – senior project manager at Rockwool

Lars Kruse, entrepreneur and rainmaker and business developer at Prolike

Asger Halberg Hansen, internship coordinator at KEA

Translated into English by Camilla Reslet