SWIEIT Speakers visit - Davidson High School

  Today, the Sydney Women in Engineering and IT Speakers Program at UTS sent representatives to Davidson High School to talk to a group of 80 girls about studying engineering and IT. Davidson High School is situated in Northern Sydney and female students from years 9 to 12 sat in on the presentations by our speakers Allissa, Julia, Harshaa and myself!

  First off, Allissa, a second year civil engineering student, spoke about her experience applying for scholarships. She spent only three hours applying for as many scholarships as possible and was offered two, which shows just how easy applying for scholarships can be. Allissa was one of the two recipients of the 2012 WJ and LM Sinclair Scholarship, worth $50,000 each.

  I spoke about some of the innovative engineering designs of the 20th century, such as the Stratosphere Tower roller coaster in LA and the Magdeburg Water Bridge in Germany, to show the girls how interesting engineering can be. We showed a video featuring Bill Gates, Mark Zuckeberg and Will I Am, explaining what coding is and how amazing jobs in IT are. Then Julia gave an inspiring speech about why she chose to study IT at UTS, the opportunities it's opened up for her and the advantages of being your own person. Julia was the only girl in her IT class the year before and implored the listening students to consider IST as a subject for years 11 and 12. She was also one of the recipients of the BIT co-op scholarships for 2013. Second round applications for these scholarships are opening on the 1st August and there are still plenty of places left. 

  Thanks go to Davidson High School for hosting us, we look forward to visiting again soon and hope to see some of your graduates joining the Faculty of Engineering and IT at UTS in 2014.

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7 Myths about Women & Work

This is a great presentation by longtime Australian Financial Review columnist and author Catherine Fox about what she has identified in her recent book as 'seven myths about women and work'.  She is motivated to gather evidence relating to women's participation and experience in the workforce to better inform public debate and policy, and her discussion is informative - and entertaining!

It was first presented at a Women in Leadership breakfast at Macquarie Uni, and was broadcast on Life Matters on Radio National on April 1, 2013.  It's introduced by show host Natasha Mitchell - who was a former staff member at the Women in Engineering & IT Program at UTS.

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Never Be Afraid to Negotiate a Reasonable Remuneration Arrangement

As a senior female engineering student in Sydney, I have noticed many of my peers having trouble finding an engineering internship to fulfill their graduate requirements or simply to gain extra industrial experience. The accepting truth that an internship would greatly benefit the many decision-making moments in our developing engineering career has given raise to some exploiting opportunities towards students from unlawful employers. In light of this, Fair Work Australia has put down tighter regulations on preventing such incidences occurring.

This is my story on why and how to stand up for myself, as a student seeking an engineering internship with fair pay.

I was approached by two companies, A and B, both state owned entities, near the end of the Spring semester to work in the rural area over the coming summer. The first, A, called me in for an interview and was happy with providing a reasonable relocation fee if I got the offer. I was in the top few to be selected but sadly, since another candidate lived closer, he or she was chosen instead. Still, the refreshing and daunting experience of being interviewed and assessed was again reminded.

Disappointed from trying very hard in preparation for company A's interview, I received a call afterwards from company B. At first, I was too excited and agreed to my interests in working for them. This proved to be a mistake as in the proceeding emails and phone calls, the position was of a work experience nature and would not be paid, and also with no relocation fee except work insurance and PPE. I was naturally in disbelief that a state owned entity would do something like that since it is of a very strong contrast to how I was treated at another state owned entity, Company C, in last year's internship. I thought they were mistaken and subsequently made enquiries to the Association of Professional Engineers, Scientists and Managers, Australia (APESMA), the university's legal services, Fair Work Ombudsman and NSW Work Cover. The solicitor from APESMA also linked me to this useful page on the Fair Work Australia website: http://www.fairwork.gov.au/resources/fact-sheets/employer-obligations/Pages/internships-vocational-placements-and-unpaid-work.aspx#work-experience-internships

Given the research and support from qualified solicitors and myself, I was able to realize my rights and my obligations. In a nutshell, the company must pay me over work I produced that injects productivity into the company. If it is just minor tasks or observatory in nature, then they don't. They don't have to pay either if its a course requirement I believe but in this case, it's not a course requirement since my experience at company C has already qualified for that.

I emailed Company B my situation and concerns with their arrangement and they agreed to keep in touch and see what can be addressed that would improve it. A month worth of negotiations later, Company B agreed to pay me under a fixed contract condition and I was able to sustain myself reasonably well throughout the internship.

Despite this 'roller coaster ride', I learnt a lot from this event and I've made a mental reminder to find out where to locate similar bodies and information when I'm working abroad.

Memoirs from a Mechatronics Engineering and Business Finance undergraduate student, as well as a Robotics fanatic :)
University of Technology, Sydney

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Women in Engineering Equity Scholarship

It's that time of year again! Scholarship applications are open once more. There are so many opportunities available for female students who want to study or are currently studying engineering and IT. The Women in Engineering Equity Scholarship is one such opportunity, designed for future female engineering students who need financial assistance throughout the duration of their degree.
To be eligible for this scholarship, you must:
- be female
- be an Australian citizen or permanent resident
- be enrolled full-time (or part time under exceptional circumstances)
- have an ATAR of at least 80, or equivalent (so it's open to non-school leavers as well)
- demonstrate financial need

For more information on how to apply, click here.
Don't forget to check the UTS scholarships page regularly for updates and for application information!

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Best Foot Forward Career Skills Workshop with CBA: Interviews

Thanks to all participants who took part in the Best Foot Forward Careers Workshop on Thursday 25 October. The workshop was the second of a three part workshop series, organised by the Women in Engineering and IT Program and facilitated by the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA). Elise Ianno has been running these workshops to help give UTS women an edge when applying for jobs and internships. Elise is the Manager of CBA Graduate Recruitment Programs, so we were very lucky to have the benefit of her wealth of experience in the job application process.
This second workshop revolved around interviews, and we were given many useful hints and tips about how best to present ourselves in interview situations. Some of this advice included:

·         Dress appropriately for the occasion

·         Be prepared to give examples of your experiences in dealing with difficult situations. This includes situations that ended negatively as well as positively; so long as you demonstrate your thought process and what you learnt. This is an opportunity to talk about your extra curricular activities as well, so don’t limit your examples to work experience and university projects.

·         Be professional, always sit up straight and make eye contact. Don’t look around the room or ask personal questions, it’s inappropriate.

·         The organisation is interviewing you to see if you're right for the job, but you should also be interviewing them to see if the job is right for you.

·         ALWAYS ask questions! If you’re stuck for questions, ask the interviewer what attracted them to the organisation. This might give you an idea of what the working environment will be like.

After Elise’s presentation, students all had the opportunity to participate in a mock interview. Feedback from the interviews was mostly positive, with everyone acting on Elise’s advice. One pointer that everyone received was to give more detail when providing examples and not to rush your answers. 
The third workshop will be held in early 2013, so keep your eyes posted for event details and updates!

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RMS site visit: Transport Management Centre for NSW

Today, the WiE&IT Team took almost 30 UTS students on a site visit to the Roads and Maritime Services (RMS) Transport Management Centre for NSW. The Transport Management Centre is situated in Redfern, and is the centre for traffic control for all state roads in the whole of NSW- that's 18,000km of road! We were invited into their presentation room, the very same room where they greet politicians and international partners, which had a great view over the Transport Operations Room. Having never heard of the TMC before, I was truly amazed to see the huge screen occupying an entire wall and displaying many familiar roads. Angela Cannuli, our presenter for the day,  explained that the Operations controllers work in shifts to monitor these roads 24/7, every day of the year, and to send assistance where it's needed.

Operations Controllers monitoring traffic in Sydney city

Angela showed a short video which explained the operations of the TMC in more detail. The Operations Controllers role is 'incident management', which involves liaising with emergency services, coordinating field resources, monitoring traffic, planning major events to minimise impact on non event communities (such as City2Surf), communicating with customers including using various social media and last but not least, road works (of course). Angela also described some of the innovations in traffic control management that have been implemented throughout Sydney over the years. One of these innovations includes the SCATS system. SCATS stands for Sydney Coordinated Adaptive Traffic System, and is used to control traffic flow. Before SCATS was used, traffic lights were on a time based cycle, and would change periodically despite traffic flow. Now, when a car pulls up at an intersection, weights under the road detect there is a demand for the lights to change. This makes it much easier to reduce congestion in busy intersections. This system was developed in Australia, but is operational in 27 countries and 263 cities around the world.

Angela showing us the SCATS system in action 

Other innovations include the electronic lane changing system used on the Harbour Bridge, as well as the Live Traffic NSW website. Fiona Simmonds, who works on the Live Traffic NSW website, gave a short talk about the mobile applications that are now available for Android and iPone (which I immediately downloaded!).
RMS are always looking for graduates. Anyone interested in working at RMS should apply through their website, found here:
http://www.rta.nsw.gov.au/careers/index.html

Keep an eye on our Facebook for more upcoming events and site visits!
http://www.facebook.com/groups/UTSwieandit/

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UTS Women in Engineering Alumni Event

It’s a rainy afternoon in Sydney, but the inside of the Powerhouse Museum is warm and alive with music and the smell of good food. Guests were welcomed in front of a giant 1920’s steam train and invited to take a look at the museum's Engineering Excellence Awards technology exhibition. Engineers from around Sydney, UTS alumni and staff were treated to canapés and drinks before presentations began.  
Themed, "Where have the flowers gone?",

the meeting is an invitation to UTS  engineering graduates to reflect on where they are now and share perspectives on the
experience for women in the profession today. 
The rate of growth of women in the engineering profession in Australia does not reflect even the small increases in university enrolments since the 1990’s. Reasons for leaving engineering uncovered by successive industry surveys include lack of flexible working conditions, workplace culture, lack of career development and pay inequity. At the same time, women are succeeding in engineering by adapting and by innovating and by finding progressive employers. What prospects are there for change that will better sustain and help retain women to succeed and flourish in their chosen fields and how can we collaborate to see it happen?
This topic was discussed by three panelists: Professor Marian Baird, Drenka Andjelic and Fiona Coe.
Professor Marian Baird has been a key policy advisor to government in the development of new legislation – Paid Parental Leave, Fair Work and the proposed Workplace Gender Equality Act.

Drenka Andjelic (Alumni) has put her values about work life balance into practice in the establishment of her project management company in the construction industry, and has won recognition for her innovation.

Fiona Coe (Alumni) has been a strong advocate for women in engineering as a student, and she has worked hard to make her professional workplace a more sympathetic environment. Now she is on a quest to find a way to resolve her passions with engineering practice.
After the speakers, there was a lively discussion  with many questions from the audience. Some interesting points of contention were raised and different view points discussed. You can view the entire presentation section of the evening by clicking here.

From left to right: Bronwyn Holland, Drenka Andjelic,
Fiona Coe and Prof. Marian Baird

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September Speakers Workshops at UTS

Between February and July this year, the Sydney Women in Engineering & IT (SWIEIT) Speakers Program have engaged with 25 schools and over 1000 school girls from years 8 to 12. This program is jointly sponsored by the Roads and Maritime Services (RMS), NSW and GHD professional services firm. More information can be found on SWIEIT Speakers Program by clicking here.

Being an active outreach initiative that WiE&IT single-handedly coordinate, speakers for our presentations and school visits are always warmly welcomed. That’s why on Wednesday 5 September and Friday 7 September, women studying either Engineering or IT at UTS were invited to come and participate in an intensive 3 hour workshop designed to improve public speaking skills.  These workshops not only gave participants an opportunity to assess and analyse their public speaking style and presence, but it also gave them an opportunity to get to know some of the other women studying in the Faculty of Engineering and IT. Principal Advisor for Workplace Diversity and Equity from RMS, Ann Pitkeathly, also attended the evenings giving some insight into the importance of public speaking skills in the public sector workplace. The workshops were open to both undergraduates and postgraduates, so there were quite a few fresh faces over the two evenings. Ian Colley from UTS Training and Development Services facilitated the workshops, giving helpful acronyms to help us remember some of the more important aspects of public speaking. Some of these tips were:

Visuals: enhance your presentation. Photos are always better than cartoons!

Audio:  Alter your tone of voice to drive home a point.

Kinaesthetic: moving and touching, getting your audience involved by asking them to raise hands. 

Head: knowledge. Knowing what you are going to talk about makes presenting easier.

Heart: emotions, try to establish an emotional connection and pull at peoples heart strings.

Feet: movement and purpose, moving around the stage but also giving your speech a direction.

Afterwards, all SWIEIT Speakers and workshop attendees were invited to the Great Hall balcony for the annual SWIEIT Speakers Party, to celebrate the years Outreach activities and acknowledge the efforts of all those who contributed to the program throughout the past few years.

WiE&IT Program staff would like to say thank you  to all the girls who have participated in the program, particularly those that have travelled long distances to reach schools in rural communities. 
Anyone who is a female studying or working in these fields, is a cadet or a cooperative scholarship recipient, or UTS female Alumni is encouraged to join the program, so they can share their story and inspire female high school students to consider engineering or IT as a career!

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Zonta Club of Sydney Breakfast - 'Women in Engineering' Award

This morning, students and staff of UTS were invited to breakfast with some of Sydney's most influential women in business, hosted at Westpac Place. Zonta International is an global initiative that is aimed at advancing the status of women in numerous fields. Once again this September, Zonta is celebrating the history of achievements of women in engineering. The breakfast began with a fantastic presentation from Sandra Triulzi, National Diversity Manager at Abigroup, a true pioneer for diversity and gender equality in the field of engineering.

Apart from offering a space to mingle, Zonta also provides encouragement for the next generation of engineers by offering financial support. This year a record number of UTS female students applied for the 2012 Zonta International Club of Sydney Breakfast Award, which was given to Su Myat Khine Win- congratulations Su Myat! Su Myat is in her second year of the Bachelor of Engineering, Diploma in Engineering Practice, majoring in Civil Engineering. Su Myat gave a short presentation at the breakfast, giving us some insight into her background and her passion for civil engineering. She began a medical degree in her home country of Burma,  before moving to Australia and finishing a nursing degree which she completed in Australia. Su Myat has been working as a qualified nurse for many years. However, her curiosity for Civil Engineering was so strong that it inspired her to change professions. Though Su Myat outlined the various challenges associated with starting a new profession after so many years away from the Maths & Physics classroom - she has been doing very well in her course and has thoroughly been enjoying her studies at UTS. Upon receiving the Zonta award, Su Myat announced she would be donating $300 back to the club, which prompted a standing ovation! Su Myat's story is truly inspiring and hearing it was definitely the highlight of the morning.

Award applicants (L-R) Jaime Cheuk, Sixiao Lu, Amy Burrows, Sy Myat Khine Win (winner), Kulsoom Hussain, Sally Anderson and Sijjal Tasneem. 

All award applicants were invited to attend the breakfast as well as getting the opportunity to mingle with Zonta Club of Sydney Breakfast members that work in various industries throughout Sydney. Su Myat Khine Win will be officially acknowledged as the Zonta Award winner at the Faculty of Engineering and IT award night in October.

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Women in Engineering Winter Gala Dinner 2012

To celebrate the conclusion of Engineering Week, the Sydney division of Engineers Australia invited women from all over Sydney and surrounds to join them for their annual Women in Engineering Winter Gala Dinner. On 11 August 2012, several representatives of the UTS Women in Engineering and IT Program attended this spectacular black tie event. This year, the Winter Gala Dinner was held at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Circular Quay, with stunning views of the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge. After being greeted by waiters holding trays of drinks and told where we were sitting, we got an opportunity to mingle and appreciate the balcony view, as well as everyone’s extravagant clothing! A wonderful three course dinner was served, interspersed with speeches by the two guest speakers. 

First to talk was Sandra Triulzi, who is the National Diversity Manager at Abigroup. Sandra spoke about her experiences and about some of the things she has learnt over the years working as a female in a male dominated industry. One of her more prominent points was the need for there to be an industry wide paradigm shift away from emphasis on the ideal employee towards being an ideal employer.

The second presenter was the guest of honour, Professor Mary O’Kane, NSW Chief Scientist and Engineer. It was a truly special experience hearing Mary's address, which touched on many keen issues that affect women in non-traditional fields today. Everyone wanted a photo with Mary afterwards as a souvenir to remember her inspirational words. 

At the close of the speeches section of the event, everyone was encouraged to stay for tea and coffee and enjoy the venue. The night was relaxing and tasteful, and I can’t wait to attend again next year!

 WiE&IT Staff with Professor Mary O'Kane, NSW Chief Scientist and Engineer

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Best Foot Forward Career Skills Workshop: Writing Effective Applications

In the WiE&IT office, we know that applying for internships or graduate positions can be a daunting and rather overwhelming process. That’s why last week WiE&IT hosted a careers workshop in conjunction with the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA). This workshop was aimed at better equipping undergraduate and postgraduate female students to prepare for joining the workforce.

The manager of the CBA Graduate Program, Elise, gave an insightful and inspiring presentation on some of the processes involved when constructing a resume and filling out applications. She covered resume structure, cover letters, wording, psychometric testing and filling out applications in the session. The workshop was facilitated by Maria, the CBA Manager for Organisational Development, who gave some insightful comments and tips on how best to communicate achievements. Some important discussion points included:

-          How best to structure your resume

-          Protocol on providing references

-          When proofreading: read, re-read and re-re-read!

-          Use professional language

-          Apply for positions well before the closing date

-          Take your time to complete an application; its alright to save it and come back later

-          Never undersell yourself!

At the end of the presentation, students were encouraged to apply for some of the graduate programs available at CBA. Currently CBA are recruiting for their Summer Internship Program. Applications close in August so start your applications now!

As the workshop closed and attendees helped themselves to a little afternoon tea, the enthusiasm told us that that everyone had learned something new.

The next workshop is on 7 December 2012, registrations will open soon!

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