I really enjoyed my time at the conference - spending time with similar minded women all at the same point in their career and hearing about all their different backgrounds and reasons for studying engineering was really inspiring. The WES Young Members Board Panel Discussion: 'Getting on the career ladder: your questions answered.' was one of the most rewarding parts of the weekend. Hearing from professionals who are not much further ahead in their professional career than myself and finding out the steps they have taken not that long ago to be where they are really gave me a sense of confidence about my life after university. The young members gave some great advice about where to start when it comes to choosing a career and specialising post-education.
As well as this, listening to Dawn Childs who has spent her life as a female engineer made me realise that if I start a career in one direction, I don't have to continue with it. The idea that career movements do not have to be leaps forward but can indeed be movements sideways or even backwards was eye opening and the motion that success can be measured in different ways has made me feel much less intimidated by the 'career ladder'.
I would definitely recommend the event to other student engineers in the future. The events above were just a couple of the highlights and there were many more interesting panels/discussions revolving around changes and issues in the industry for all engineering disciplines.
Amy Donohoe - Vice-Chair of WESBath
MEng (hons) Civil and Architectural Engineering - 5th year
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