NEWS
IET YWE 2018
IET
YOUNG WOMEN ENGINEERS MAKE
NATIONAL FINAL AND GET SET TO INSPIRE
MORE GIRLS TO JOIN THE INDUSTRY
To celebrate Ada Lovelace Day, six young
female engineers working on projects
ranging from future combat jets and
spaceplanes to artificial intelligence have
been announced as finalists for the Institution
of Engineering and Technology (IET) Young
Woman Engineer of the Year Awards 2018.
These prestigious engineering industry
awards celebrate women working in modern
engineering – and aim to help change the
perception that engineering is predominantly
a career for men by banishing outdated
engineering stereotypes of hard hats and
dirty overalls.
Kate Self (20), Shajida Akthar (22), Sophie
Harker (26), Amy Wright (28), Lorna Bennet
(29), and Dr Claire Donoghue (33) have all
been shortlisted for awards.
The finalists are:
• Kate Self is a degree apprentice in TV at
BT Tower, studying towards a Bachelor’s
degree in Digital and Media Solutions. In
her role Kate has worked on a variety of
high-profile projects including contributing
to the success of the BBC’s next-generation
broadcast network and helping to
implement cutting-edge surround sound
technology for the UEFA Champions
League.
• Shajida Akthar is a Software Engineer at
Accenture which involves coding scripts
to automate manual processes in Financial
Services.
• Sophie Harker is an Aerodynamics &
Performance Engineer for BAE Systems. She
performs aerodynamic and performance
analyses on future combat jets, as well
working on hypersonic aircraft and the
application of emerging technologies in
aviation.
• Amy Wright is Senior Site Engineer at
Farrans Construction. She was part of the
core team constructing the impressive
Northern Spire bridge across the River
Wear, which opened to traffic in August
this year. In her role with Farrans, Amy
leads subcontractors to complete sections
of work and manages programming,
resourcing, quality and health and
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safety. Amy was the Regional Education
Coordinator for the Institution of Civil
Engineers North East and was responsible
for initiatives that reached thousands of
students to promote engineering.
• Lorna Bennet a Mechanical Engineer at
the Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult.
She works to improve the operations
and maintenance of offshore renewable
energy assets.
• Dr Claire Donoghue is a Software
Specialist at 3M’s Corporate Research
Lab, where she is researching disruptive
technologies such as Artificial Intelligence
and computer vision to invent and
engineer new products.
As well as highlighting female engineering
talent, the IET Young Woman Engineer of
the Year Awards seek to find role models
who can help address the UK science and
engineering skills crisis by promoting
engineering careers to more girls and
women. Just 12% of those working in
engineering occupations are women
(source: Engineering UK).
Jo Foster, Diversity and Inclusion Manager
at the IET said: “Engineering is a fantastic
career – it’s diverse and exciting with the
opportunity to do something life- or world-
changing. But the lack of women in the
sector is a huge problem.
“The difficulty in attracting women into
engineering is down to a combination of
things, including the image of engineers
within the UK, careers advice girls are given
in schools and the way that companies
with engineering roles advertise their
opportunities.
“It’s also a result of the lack of engineering
role models for girls, which is why our
Young Woman Engineer of the Year Awards
are all about finding role models to get girls
– and young people in general – excited
and inspired about a career in engineering.
“I’d like to congratulate Kate, Shajida,
Sophie, Amy, Lorna and Claire for making
the final six and in helping to demonstrate
the tremendous female engineering talent
in our industry today.”
Minister for the Year of Engineering Nusrat
Ghani added: “Engineers shape the world
around us, and are at the forefront of
tackling some of the biggest challenges we
face – from protecting our environment, to
harnessing the power of AI to fight disease.
So it’s vital that we encourage more girls
to consider careers in the profession and
be part of shaping a future that works for
everyone.
“Celebrating creative, innovative and
stereotype-smashing engineers from all
backgrounds is at the heart of the Year of
Engineering, and it’s fantastic to see the
achievements of some of the many brilliant
women in engineering being recognised
by the IET today. I’m sure all of these
trailblazing finalists will play a crucial role
in showing girls what they could achieve as
engineers.”
The winner will be announced at
the IET Young Woman Engineer
of the Year Awards ceremony on
6 December at IET London: Savoy
Place. For more information,
visit www.theiet.org/ywe.