Nadia

What led you to engineering at UC?

The WiE CAN (Women in Engineering Residential Programme) camp was a huge turning point for me. It broke down what engineering was and broke down the stereotype of only men doing engineering. It was really welcoming and approachable, and got you excited about studying engineering. It also made UC more approachable because you've experienced the uni and department and made some friends before starting.

You’ve won a few scholarships, too!

UC awarded me the Emerging Leader’s Development scholarship, the Pacific Engineering scholarship, and the Academic Excellence scholarship. They were really accessible, and it was another reason I chose UC because it allowed me to be able to go into the halls my first year, where I met a lot of my friends.

What’s the coolest thing you’ve done in your Engineering courses so far?

You do lots of group projects in engineering. The most famous one is the bridge building competition, where you design and build a four metre long bridge out of wood and your team tests it by walking across it. People come watch and support their friends. It's a really fun competition that’s been going on forever. Anyone who studied Civil Engineering at UC talks about their bridge.

You’ve also been involved with some mentoring; was that useful?

ENGMe is a really valuable program where all first-year engineers are assigned a mentor. You go, there’s free food, and they tell you how to succeed in engineering and give you tips and tricks. My mentor got us tutors for our tests, gave me her old notes - it was so helpful.

How has studying at UC opened doors for your future?

UC Engineering has really good industry ties through both the department and the Engineering clubs. Over summer I worked as a Structural Engineering intern, and most people there had studied at UC. And the clubs hold a lot of industry events where you can network, get an industry mentor, and take field trips to big plants. UC is really well respected as an Engineering university.