Nhat Minh Ho: Taking Big Chances Pays Off
ArchE student Nhat Ho finds inspiration at the Blanton Museum of Art on UT campus.
Some students seek out challenge rather than shy away from it. Architectural Engineering senior Nhat Ho has made a point of looking beyond the easy path ever since he decided to attend UT-Austin.
Nhat was born in a small Vietnamese city and as much as he loved his home, he packed his bags to come to the U.S. at the age of 17. His mother, a former physician with international training, nurtured a love for the English language in him since he was a child so coming to the States felt like a natural move. He started out as an exchange student at Leander High School then continued at Lone Star Community College.
Although he was offered scholarships to many universities in Texas, he always had his eyes on UT-Austin. Though he knew he could only afford one semester paying full international tuition, he took a chance and came here anyway. To him, the most attractive aspect of the UT CAEE Department is that although it is a public university program, it shares equal pride and prestige with MIT, Stanford, and other private peer institutions.
“It was an ‘all in’ bet for me,” says Nhat. “My parents, without knowing exactly how they could fund my education, encouraged me to take the path where my heart felt right. I took the challenge, overcame and earned my spot here at UT-Austin. So what brought me here was the ‘Texas spirit’, faith in myself, and the unshaken love and support of my parents.”
His passion for architecture and interest in math and physics led him to major in Architectural Engineering with a focus in structural analysis and design. He is also a member of the student chapter of ASCE and the Architectural Engineering Honor Society, Phi Alpha Epsilon, which serve as social outlets for him since he works 20 hours a week and takes at least five classes per semester. This fall is Nhat’s last semester at UT as an undergrad and he looks forward to attending more social and volunteer events.
Nhat’s upper level design project was intended to create a museum that multi-functions as a media art exhibiting hall, dining cafe and a street front store at two major intersections. Students were expected to incorporate structural and MEP systems into their designs.
Nhat also enjoys cooking Vietnamese food, drawing, playing racquetball and guitar, leading campus tours for students and alumni, visiting the arcade at Dave and Buster’s, and eating shaved ice with his girlfriend. Since Austin is a vibrant and humanistic city, it his ideal place to live. When he needs creative inspiration, he visits art museums or explores downtown architecture and when he craves natural landscapes, he climbs Mount Bonnell, swims in Barton Springs or relaxes at Lady Bird Lake.
As he nears graduation, Nhat is making decisions about his immediate future. Over the past summer, he worked with L.A. Fuess and Partners in Dallas and got a very good idea of what he can and cannot do yet with his degree. He seeks deeper understanding of the design of high performance structures and applications of innovative materials in structural design and hopes to obtain his master’s degree in a couple of years.
When asked if he could offer any guidance to incoming students, he says “Be excited about diving into what you like but don’t be afraid to explore what you don’t like. Give everything a chance and all of your effort! If you enjoy a professor but he or she gives crazy hard tests, don’t run away! It can lead to deeper understanding of the material. I take many extra classes (both under and upper division, engineering and non-engineering), some that I love and some I do not, but overall they enhanced my confidence and creativity.”
Nhat’s favorite quote, which seems to sum up his attitude, is from Apple Computer co-founder Steve Jobs: “Be a yard stick of quality. Some people aren’t used to an environment where excellence is expected.”
“A lot of schools can provide a ‘good engineering program’ but sometime being ‘good’ is just not enough,” he says. “I have a desire to climb for the top and here at UT, I found the same fighting spirit from many other fellow students whom I compete with, respect and love.”