Nicola Grahamslaw says Top 50 Women Engineers can inspire next generation

Young people need to be able to see themselves as engineers, and real-life stories can light that spark and ignite the imagination.

The SS Great Britain Trust’s Nicola Grahamslaw has been named on The Telegraph’s Top 50 Women in Engineering List, which in 2018 features women who have either transferred into Engineering or returned from a career break.

The Chartered Mechanical Engineer and member of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers said she was flattered by the recognition, as well as inspired by the fantastic stories of the other women selected by The Telegraph.

“I was really flattered to be included in the list,” she said. “Unlike many of the women in this year’s Top 50, I took a fairly traditional route into engineering. There were so many inspiring stories of people from all walks of life coming into engineering as a second career.

“Learning more about these people really opened my eyes to the variety of possible routes into engineering, and I’m excited to be able to share their stories when talking to young people about opportunities in the profession.”

Nicola recently returned to the profession after a career break working in education, and is keen to use this experience, along with the recognition gained from being named on the list to promote engineering as a career choice for future generations.

“Outreach is vitally important for engineering,” she says. “I became an engineer almost by accident, I didn’t have any idea what engineering was until I was around 16. My teachers went the extra mile to boost my confidence and encourage my interest in physics, and I took part in an extra-curricular project which helped me to discover the variety of jobs an engineer could do.

“We have a problem with misconceptions of the profession, and while there are plenty of great role models out there, we still have a long way to go to promote engineering to young people. The industry needs to communicate these real-life examples to parents and teachers, as well as students, to change the perception of what engineers actually do.”