What I love about being a civil engineer (that I didn’t know before I became one)
I didn’t realise the full extent of work and expertise that goes into a single project.
Although I trained and now work as a civil engineer, I’ve worked on environmental problems, commercial ones, I’ve learnt about BIM (Building Information Modelling), about the law, security, management, programming, chemistry ... as someone who does get easily bored, to have a job so varied is absolutely incredible.
The civil engineering myth I’d like to bust
It’s a man’s world.
What a load of rubbish! I’ve had so much support and lots of help ever since I started and have been given nothing but respect for working in the industry.
I’d recommend a career in civil engineering because
There are just so many options! One day you may be building a bridge, the next a sewer, then you might be helping out with the design team, then the next day helping out the commercial team.
You learn about legislation, health and safety, environment, mechanics, chemistry, biodiversity, it doesn’t matter what you’re interested in, you’ll find something in civil engineering that suits you.
You’ll also get to leave something tangible. Most structures today are designed to last more than 100 years. Knowing that I’ve helped build something that my children and grandchildren may use is a real source of pride for me.
The project, past or present, I wish I'd worked on
I’d like to work on a really big dam project sometime, something like the Three Gorges or the Hoover Dam. Dams have so many technical components and they cover so many elements that they must be incredibly interesting to build.
What gets me out of bed every morning?
I like not knowing exactly what each day will hold – what challenges will come up today? How will I solve them? Although there are some jobs that have to be done every day, there’s so much variation it’s always quite exciting.