Peggy Jarvie, University of Waterloo International Student Award Current Award Recipients

Thomas Reid is a fourth-year civil engineering undergraduate student at the University of Waterloo. During his time at EKFB, Thomas demonstrated confidence and a strong willingness to be part of the next generation of civil engineers. Working as a site engineer on a 3 km stretch of the United Kingdom’s revolutionary High Speed 2 (HS2) rail project, he was exposed to a complex and demanding work environment.

Thomas completed two four‑month placements with EKFB—one at age 18 and another at age 20—during which he managed a workload comparable to that of a graduate with two years of experience. Some of his major successes included overseeing several mini‑projects as the engineering lead, covering multiple engineers’ responsibilities while they were on leave, and clearly conveying progress reports to senior management during meetings. Additionally, he learned many industry‑leading practices thanks to HS2’s world‑class standards, gaining experience in detail-oriented quality assurance and data collection of key assets on his site. Throughout his time at EKFB, Thomas also formed many meaningful connections with colleagues in both the site office and the construction site.

Outside of work, Thomas enjoys staying active and spending time with friends and family. He is also an avid sports fan. While in the United Kingdom, he attended several Premier League and rugby union matches in London. In addition to participating in team sports, Thomas is currently training for his third Vancouver Marathon. Looking to the future, he is excited about the opportunities presented through co‑op and aspires to build a successful career as a civil engineer.