Alumnus Jason Levinn shares his experience as a student in Penn State Altoona's Rail Transportation Engineering program.
By: Marissa Carney
Jason Levinn already has a bachelor’s degree in finance from the University of Richmond. He also has a master’s degree in environmental management from Duke University. He’s worked for Booz Allen Hamilton, a government consulting firm based in Washington, D.C., for nearly 15 years, serving as a leader in the firm’s railroad consulting business for the last decade.
“There's unique technical knowledge in the railroad industry, and there are a lot of projects that require that expertise. I didn't have that technical engineering know-how, and I felt I was missing a critical component of the career I’ve committed myself to. It’s vital for career mobility.
My company has been very supportive of me doing this program. It's a direct investment in our business because our clients want this expertise. It helps us find work and maintain our strengths as a company.”
What interested you about Penn State Altoona’s RTE program? I was excited to explore opportunities to expand my knowledge of the industry. In doing research on the best ways to do that, I came across this program. The fact that it is the nation’s first and only bachelor of science degree in rail transportation engineering really drew me to it.
It also has full accreditation by the engineering commission of ABET. I was pretty excited about that just on face value, but I also want to get my professional engineer license. That's a big credential to have in the federal space as a consultant. You need to have an accredited bachelor's degree just to sit for that exam. If I were going to invest my time, energy, and money, I wanted the best return possible. Penn State Altoona could provide that to me.
What did you like most about the RTE program? Going into it, I knew classes would be small, and I have enjoyed that. I really got to know my classmates and professors that way. The professors are committed to the program and have invested so much into it through the years. They are all so supportive, as well.
At first, I was unsure if Altoona was the best location to study rail transportation, but over time, I’ve come to realize that western Pennsylvania, and Altoona in particular, is actually a perfect home for the RTE program and for industry exposure.
There’s Norfolk Southern, the Everett Railroad, and the North Shore Railroad right here, as well as Amtrak and the Horseshoe Curve. There’s also the Railroaders Memorial Museum where we’ve started taking classes and where the Penn State Altoona locomotive is housed. You can literally take what you learn in class and labs, go right out the door, and see it in motion.
Western Pennsylvania is dense with railroad industry suppliers and manufacturing facilities, and we were able to visit several of them on field trips, including Wabtec’s massive plant in Erie and Electric Motor and Supply in Altoona. We’ve had speakers from various parts of the industry who were illuminating, too.
As a transfer student from the Brandywine and Harrisburg campuses, I've discovered that there's a whole network of resources and industries here in Altoona that are rail-adjacent or rail-related, and that’s another unique part of the RTE program.
What is your advice for prospective RTE students? The biggest hurdle in attaining an engineering degree is to persevere through the early years of hardcore math and science courses. Work hard through these courses, and seek help from your fellow students, faculty, and other campus resources so you can achieve your goal of becoming an engineer.
I would highly encourage anyone interested in pursuing the RTE degree to join the American Railway Engineering and Maintenance Association student chapter in Altoona to network with your peers and gain further insight into how to make a career in railroading.
What are your future plans? For now, I plan to enjoy not having homework on top of my regular workday, and I’m excited to dig deeper into some of the great railroad projects I have at Booz Allen Hamilton. With the knowledge I’ve attained through the RTE program, I know I can go anywhere there are steel wheels running on steel rail and make a meaningful impact.
