Class of 2013 Graduate Stories
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June 19, 2013
The University of Texas at Austin’s 2013 spring graduation said goodbye to a brilliant class of engineers. UT PGE followed up with two talented students, Jennifer Agnew and Austin Basham, to learn about their post-college journey.
Both will be taking on the world with their international travel and projects, but from two very different approaches.
Jennifer Agnew – BSPE ‘13
Jennifer Agnew scored a coveted full-time position at ExxonMobil. Starting August 1, she will be working on the Equatorial Guinea operations as a reservoir engineer within a Houston-based team comprised of engineers and geoscientists using computer reservoir simulation models to optimize production rates and maximize oil and gas recovery of the reservoirs. ExxonMobil is the major operator of Equatorial Guinea’s main oil field: Zafiro. With the political instability the country faces, Agnew hopes to contribute to ensuring the moral integrity of the company remains intact, particularly since high environmental standards are not required by law.
As a second generation petroleum engineer, Agnew’s aspirations of working for ExxonMobil took flight at an early age.
“My dad, Mark [Angew] (BSPE ’89) who is also a graduate of the UT PGE department, works for ExxonMobil and has been with the company since he graduated from the university,” said Agnew. “He highly recommended the company to me based on the strong culture and the opportunity to work on large projects with access to incredible data and technology.”
Agnew landed her first internship at ExxonMobil as a result of the SPE Gulf Coast Section Scholarship, awarded to high school students planning to study science or engineering in college to increase interest in the petroleum industry. After awarding the scholarships, the committee forwarded the recipients’ applications to Houston-area oil and gas companies for potential summer internship opportunities. ExxonMobil reached out to Agnew.
“This was the start of my career in the oil business,” Agnew said. “Getting an internship with the SPE Gulf Coast Scholarship put me in a position to succeed post-graduation.”
Obtaining four internships with the company during her stint at UT PGE - two in reservoir engineering and two in subsurface production – she fell in love with the internship program, saying that one of her favorite aspects of the job is making a positive impact on an integral company project.
Dr. Matt Balhoff, an UT PGE associate professor, knew Agnew’s exceptional work ethic in class and strong internship experiences would lead to a positive future.
“Jennifer is a bright, enthusiastic and hard-working 2013 graduate of our department and I look forward to watching what will certainly be a fruitful career at ExxonMobil,” Balhoff said. “The entire 2013 class was outstanding and I am proud to have been a small part of their career development.”
Agnew is looking forward to taking the lessons she learned at UT PGE with her to the field.
“Working in a diverse group during my senior design project class was one of the most valuable skills I obtained in the department,” said Agnew. “It’s important to successfully work in a group environment and know people within that group will see from a variety of lenses - I think that is what leads to success.”
After working hard to gain her full-time position, Agnew is taking a well-deserved break joining the Essential Europe trip with Texas Exes. The group of UT graduates will be in Europe for 24 days traveling to England, France, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Austria, Italy, Vatican City and Greece checking out all the exciting and famous sites.
Austin Basham – BSPE ’13
Austin Basham is relocating this summer—but not to a traditional oil and gas city like Houston or Denver, and not for a high paying position in the energy industry. Basham is taking his degree across the pond, in hopes that a stint in foggy London will provide a clear path to pursue his passion for music.
While a sophomore at UT PGE, Basham released his debut album, “Little Foxes.” The album, which Basham describes as “modern-day folklore” features nine songs, eight of which he wrote himself. Inspired by folk singer-songwriters such as James Taylor, Nick Drake, Neil Young, Johnny Flynn, and his dad, a singer-songwriter himself, Basham learned to play the guitar and trumpet at an early age and began writing music at 14. Like any true singer-songwriter, Basham writes, composes and plays all of his own music—but he also recorded, mixed and produced everything on his album, including the cover artwork.
Spending four years deriving equations and solving complex mathematical problems has complimented Basham’s development as a musician, instilling in him strong attention to detail and intellectual stamina, which comes in handy during 15-hour recording sessions.
“There is a creative side, but also a whole mathematical side to what I do,” said Basham. “When I’m recording and mixing, I have to be particular about the different levels for each piece of the song, where to incorporate harmony or layer in different instruments.”
The correlation between engineering and music is evident within the UT PGE department, which boasts a handful of accomplished musicians among the faculty, including Professor Larry Lake, who is a talented pianist.
“Both areas have a highly formal method of communication - for the musician it’s the musical score and for the engineer it’s math,” said Lake.
Over the course of this next year, Basham hopes to refine his sound and play as many live gigs as possible, as well as follow up “Little Foxes” with another full-length album. Living in the live music capital of the world, Basham has found success locally in Austin, playing gigs around town at well-known haunts such as Spider House, Cactus Café and Hole in the Wall. Through social media, Basham has been able to take his talent on a global scale. He boasts nearly 3,400 followers on Twitter, including some from the United Kingdom (U.K.).
When asked why he chose London to visit post-graduation, Basham said, “I’ve always loved London, and almost every band I’ve ever been passionate about has come out of the U.K.—it’s a great place to be creative.”
Though a career in petroleum engineering is still on the table for this Houston native, Basham believes that his passion for music will propel him throughout his career, serving as an outlet for his imagination and broadening his horizons, regardless of his profession.
To check out Basham’s music, visit his website, follow him on Twitter @austinbasham, or purchase “Little Foxes” on iTunes.
