Bahaar Taylor graduated from BYU in 2015 with a degree in civil engineering, and has since pursued a career as a structural engineer. She has worked on projects all over the Pacific Northwest and Maui, Hawaii.
Taylor works for Erickson Structural Consulting Engineers, an engineering firm based out of Vancouver, Washington that focuses on forensic investigations and structural diagnostics, seismic evaluations, building remodels and renovations. She has a wide variety of responsibilities including: conducting site visits, structural evaluations and investigations, performing structural calculations, communication with clients, writing reports, and drafting structural drawings.
Due to the diversity of projects, Taylor is always learning something new.
“The most important thing I’ve learned is that, with the right tools, I have the ability to handle anything that comes my way,” she said. “I don’t know everything (not even close) but I haven’t yet run into something I couldn’t figure out.”
Taylor loves facing difficult engineering challenges and learning from them because it gives her the professional freedom to work on what she loves and a wide range of projects, including working on an LDS temple. She had always wanted to do engineering work for an LDS temple and she recently had the opportunity to work on two different structural addition projects to the Portland, Oregon Temple.
“Working on a temple has been a dream of mine since I started studying engineering, it’s amazing to see it finally realized,” Taylor said. “Structural engineering is a very fulfilling career.”
Taylor was very grateful for her time at BYU because it gave her a strong technical background which prepared her for her profession.
“BYU’s math and engineering classes helped me develop the habit of problem solving and gave me the confidence I needed to go out into the industry,” she said.
Taylor also gave some advice to BYU students and encouraged them to continue learning.
“With engineering work, every project is unique,” she said. “Always continue learning and don’t be afraid to ask questions.”