WES September Careers Newsletter

Welcome to the WES Careers newsletter, a career boost straight to your inbox!

This newsletter will highlight key jobs coming up, offer career advice, and provide up-to-date information about the world of work within the engineering industry.

NEWS

Save the Date for the 2024 Student and Apprentice Conference!

Join us in Bristol, on Nov 1, to network, learn, and be inspired.

This year, we have a special focus on Engineering Apprenticeships with sessions from the WES Apprentice Board.

Whether you’re a school leaver looking to break into engineering, or a current engineering student seeking renewed inspiration, this is the event for you.

Book your place now: https://ow.ly/ HWIw50T8lt1

Become a WES Trustee

Could you help shape the future of WES? Nominations are now open for our Trustee board.

Further information is on our website https://ow.ly/O7Gt50T534V

Nominations close on 13 September. Results will be announced at the WES AGM on the 26 October.

Join us for our Free, Monthly Member Webinars

Whether you’re seeking inspiration, advice, or insights into various branches of engineering, our monthly member webinars are an excellent way to enhance your career.

Best of all, they are free to attend!

• 25.09.2024 - Sheila Hoile and Jenny McLaughlin - Women in Aeronautics

Sheila Hoile MBE was the first female to gain an aeronautical degree at Southampton (and worked on Concord), she was also the first female director for CITB.

Her daughter Jenny McLaughlin won a Top 50 Women in Engineering award in 2023 and has worked within the airport industry for over 20 years. Join them as they chat about careers, breaking barriers, and more at our monthly webinar on the 25th of September: https://ow.ly/pq8O50TiGU3

CURRENT VACANCIES

Featured Job

• Senior Consultant: Wind resource and energy assessment.
• Salary: Competitive salary dependent on experience, pension scheme, annual profit share and route into company ownership
• Location: UK (Bristol, Glasgow, Brighton or Fife office) with hybrid remote working. We’re also interested to hear from candidates based in Dublin and Paris
• Hours: Normal office hours with a healthy level of flexibility. Preference for 5 days per week but encourage people who would prefer part-time to apply (minimum 3 days per week)
• Deadline for applications: 15th September 2024

Job Board Highlights

Here is a selection of our latest job opportunities from our partners.

For additional details, or to explore other vacancies, please visit our jobs board.

• ASSISTANT PROFESSOR (POWER ELECTRONICS)
• Senior Consultant: Wind resource and energy assessment
• Technical Trainer
• Infrastructure Engineer
• RTSD Project Manager
• Digital Transformation Architect

INDUSTRY INSIGHTS

We reached out to our members, asking them to share the advice they wished they had received as young women engineers.

We are thrilled by the overwhelming response from industry professionals who generously shared their wisdom. Below, you’ll find some of their insightful entries.

Due to the popularity of this initiative, we have decided to include these valuable contributions in all future editions of our career newsletter. We hope their words inspire and empower other female engineers.

Rosie Plant - Hydrogen Project Manager

I am a chemical engineer and have been working in the energy industry for 14 years. My career advice is to have the courage to ask for what you want from your career. Too often people negotiate with themselves before they ask for something, which leads to them either never asking or significantly watering down the request. Most people want to help you if you can, but to do that they need to know exactly what they are helping with. The worst that can happen is that you get told no, the best case is yes, and often it might be something you hadn't even thought of that moves you in the direction you'd like to go.

Mel Sutcliffe - Senior Test Engineer

I was fortunate to find myself working in a sector and a role that suited me and made me happy. If that hadn’t been the case, I’d have recommended exploring different engineering roles as there’s almost certainly a good match out there for anyone with an interest in engineering. There seems to be a misapprehension amongst the young that the field of engineering is limited to dirty, sweaty overalls and unpleasant working environments, when nothing could be further from the truth (unless that aspect of the role appeals, in which case there are plenty of suitable opportunities!). I’ve worked as a software engineer for over 20 years (OK, it’s getting closer to 25), and I genuinely love the job I do. I consider myself very lucky to be working as an engineer, and I’d recommend anyone embarking on further education, considering a career change or a return to the workplace, to investigate the opportunities which exist in the diverse world of engineering.

Seeking more Engineering Insights for our Careers Newsletter!

Are you brimming with invaluable career advice? We'd like to feature your expertise in our upcoming careers newsletter, aimed at empowering fellow engineers.

Whether you’re a seasoned professional with years of experience or a fresh face in the field with a keen grasp of modern career essentials, we'd like to hear from you.

Share your insights and help us enlighten the engineering community.

Please send your contributions to [email protected] and join us in guiding the next generation of engineers.

BECOME A WES MEMBER

Why WES?

WES is a community of people both in and out of STEM with the common goal of promoting women in engineering. Whether you want to lead engineering into the future, expand your network or make some new interesting friends, joining WES is a great place to start.

See a full list of our partners and sponsors