International Women in Engineering Day is a celebration of the amazing work that women engineers do and a chance to inspire anyone who might be interested in a career in engineering.
This year’s theme is Make Safety Seen – a subject particularly pertinent to Forsberg due to our involvement in the defence and security sectors. In the spirit of the day, we caught up with our Software Engineer Jessie, to talk about her passion for innovation, what inspired her to become an Engineer and her thoughts on creating inclusive work spaces.
Jessie joined Forsberg in 2022 straight from Lancaster University after completing her Physics Master’s Degree. Jessie started on a three-month internship as a software engineer which swiftly developed into a permanent position.
What inspired you to become an engineer? What inspired you to pursue a career in the STEM industry?
I always enjoyed maths at school, it clicked in my brain, and I liked how things just made sense. That’s not to say I found it easy or was a natural, but finally understanding a concept or solving a problem with hard work was more rewarding and gave me more motivation than other subjects I found easier. From studying physics, I learnt to apply maths to explain the world around us, and coding is another tool for helping you to solve and explain things that you don’t understand. Engineering is exactly that: taking theory and scientific principles and applying them to the real world to do the task or solve the problem you need to.
For me maths, physics and problem solving came together and I ended up as a software engineer.
What do you enjoy most about your work as an engineer?
Some people think that STEM is the opposite of the arts and being creative, but I have found that writing coding and trying to find elegant solutions for problems fulfils the need for creating things, and I enjoy getting to satisfy that part of me with my work.
“I really enjoy the projects I get to work on at Forsberg which have real world impact. Being able to have a tangible effect on solving issues which effect people is really gratifying, for example through the work we’re doing within the security sector helping to make communities safe.”
Jessie Fitzpatrick, Software Engineer at Forsberg
Why is female talent so crucial to the engineering industry?
Some of the greatest scientific minds in history have been women, and that is despite the disadvantages in education and opportunity that they faced. If all women were able to realise their potential, think how far we could be today. By showcasing that engineering is a field for women and a space they can excel in is important to improve the ratio of women in STEM. Women bring a different perspective to solution finding and see different problems which need solving from our varied experience of the world. If we’re missing out on the talents of half the population, science will never reach its full potential.
What advice would you give to someone who is considering an engineering qualification/interested in a career in engineering?
Go for it! Everybody belongs in engineering and there’s a niche for everyone. Don’t be put off by not feeling like you’re a natural whizz, or by people who shout louder about how good they are. Hard work and persistence are worth more than any natural ability.
Working at Forsberg
If you’re interested in a career in engineering, would like to enquire about a work placement or just interested in the range of benefits we provide to support our employees, head to our careers page to find out more about opportunities available at Forsberg https://teleplanforsberg.com/index.php/careers/
