There is no denying that a gender imbalance exists when it comes to engineering. In the Netherlands, only 19% of engineers are females. This percentage is already higher than in other countries. We are happy to see more and more discussions about diversity and inclusion in the university and the industry. Unfortunately, change is not easy; it takes time. Before the completion of the change, we need to prepare ourselves for the real world.
Here is some experience of myself. Before pursuing my Ph.D., I worked in a consulting company as a bridge engineer for five years in Shanghai, China. Fortunately, I had the opportunity to get involved in big projects with millions of investments. Not only involved, I am the core team member. It is very rare for fresh graduates. Can you imagine, when my girlfriend was drawing the stairs, I was already working on a cable-stayed bridge. When I moved to an arch bridge, my girlfriend was still drawing stairs. Why? Because I am smarter? I get a higher score in the university? No. Because I am lucky. The section I joined is at the beginning stage, so we are short-handed. That's why I can get involved. My career path is an abnormal one. And what my girlfriend is experiencing is in fact the typical path. Female engineers are naturally assigned easier or simpler tasks. The good side is that it is simple and easy. The wrong side is the same, they are simple and easy, and you do not get the chance to learn, improve and develop. Very soon, after two years, you will find yourself fallen behind, always excluded from the "good" project, the challenging task and the fun part.
So here is my first advice, ask for a challenging task. Go to the director or manager, tell him that you want to get involved, you are already familiar with ..., but now you want to try ....Yes, we need to fight for opportunities and please don't hesitate to do so.
My second piece of advice is to find yourself a role model. During my undergraduate years, nobody discussed gender inequality. Most of us did not even realize the problem in fact. Not familiar with the job market, career path, the fresh graduates, turn to their parents for help in many cases. "Stable! Stable! Stable!" is the golden rule. Public servant is one of the dream jobs for many parents. Today, when I look back, one thing is for sure, this is not the dream job for everybody. After several years of working, do you still have the courage to start over again? Are you still competitive in the job market? Are you willing to sacrifice family time, leisure time for an uncertain future? Does your company support part-time jobs? Too many things to consider. Nobody could decide for you. When you throw the puzzle to a professor, CEO, or best friend, the advice you get is always the conservative one, the general one. This is natural. Because they are not you, they do not know you, they have no idea of your ability, your ambition and your strength and weakness. This is the moment when role models play their magic power.
I also have my own role models.
To be continued.
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