How Engineering Chose Me

Emma joined Network Rail in 2019 as a technical clerk, providing admin support to a team of civil engineers. She had no engineering background, she'd left school in 2000 with Highers in languages, and her route since had taken her through two unfinished degrees and a series of admin and call centre roles.A senior asset engineer asked whether she'd ever considered becoming an engineer. Emma hadn't. What followed was several years of self-directed study relearning maths from scratch, an Access course through Aberdeen, then civil engineering on day release at Glasgow Kelvin, funded by Network Rail. She moved into an assistant asset engineer role in structures, and last month started as an Asset Engineer in the buildings team.Emma talks about what it takes to retrain mid-career while raising a child on your own, the people who backed her before she'd proved anything, and why she feels a responsibility to the people coming in behind her.She also makes the case for site visits, explains why context changes how you read a defect, and describes the appeal of a discipline where doing the job well means nobody notices.This is what the Engineer a Career podcast exists for, the stories of today's engineers, told by the people living them.

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Episoder(64)

Start The Rhythm. Your Engineering Journal.

The simplest habit in this episode is the one you'll wish you'd started sooner.Sixteen years ago, in his first job, Josh was told to keep a notepad. He still does over 25 of them now, filled with note...

18 Aug 8min

Stop Underselling Yourself!

Josh is back with more steps to build your way to a career in engineering.This one's about the skills you already have and aren't talking about. You go to university or college, you get the degree but...

11 Aug 12min

Starting an engineering degree?

Episode 60 of the Engineer a Career Podcast, with Josh going solo at the start of a new academic year to reflect on his own engineering degree what he got right, and what he would do differently.Josh ...

4 Aug 20min

From Electrician to Chartered Engineer

Josh sat down with Ryan to talk through his journey from electrical apprentice to chartered engineer, and how he ended up working as a senior project manager in Perth, Australia.What stands out about ...

28 Jul 56min

Engineering, Entrepreneurialism and The Energy Institute

It's Episode 58, and it's time to share what it's really like being a member of one of our strategic partners, the Energy Institute.Ubong Essien is a PhD researcher at the University of Strathclyde an...

21 Jul 33min

Your Way of Thinking Isn't Wrong

Episode 56 of the Engineer a Career Podcast, with Josh joined by John Casey.John Casey started his engineering career at 16, spending eight weeks of work experience at a wind farm in southwest Scotlan...

7 Jul 36min

Earning and Learning: Apprenticeship to Chartered Engineer

Katie started her engineering career at 18, turning down a university place to take an apprenticeship at Jacobs, a decision she had to make before she'd even sat her Highers. Eleven years on, she's a ...

30 Jun 39min