UTS student Ashwini Ranjithabalan will represent the female engineering student body as part of a prestigious Engineers Australia scholarship awarded today.
The final-year civil and environmental engineering undergraduate and employee of the UTS Women in Engineering & IT (WiE&IT) program was one of two winners of the 2015 Sydney Division Engineers Australia WIE Student Scholarship Award.
Ashwini and her co-winner will now join the advisory board of Engineers Australia's Women in Engineering Sydney Division for one year as student ambassadors.
The advisory role builds on Ashwini's role as an industry project officer with the WiE&IT program, which aims to redress the low rate of female participation in these fields. Since 2013 Ashwini has been a strong public speaker and influential advocate in NSW schools, introducing female students to the opportunities of engineering and IT as choices of study and career.
"My work with the WiE&IT team at UTS has most certainly developed my understanding of issues that women may face in these fields due to low diversity," Ashwini said.
Year 8 and 9 girls from Merrylands High School building a Rube Goldberg machine in an activity designed by Ashwini Ranjithabalan. Picture by Chris Gleisner
"Growing up with a father who was a mechanical engineer had a significant influence on my decision to studying engineering at university. However in my senior high school years at an all-girls public high school there were many hurdles for me to overcome. There was no mention of engineering at high school and no subjects that gave me any insight into what engineering was.
"I remember asking my teacher about choosing engineering studies as an elective, but she said that not enough girls would be interested to run it as a subject."
Ashwini says her experience with the UTS program has prepared her well for her upcoming advisory role on the Women in Engineering Sydney Division board.
"My work with the UTS Sydney Women in Engineering & IT Speakers Program gave me the opportunity to travel to schools across NSW to speak with female school students about my journey into engineering, and it was a reminder that a problem still exists.
"There is very limited understanding of engineering or exposure to what an engineer is, what they do and where this career could lead. This experience has given me greater understanding of how young women perceive a career in engineering.
"Engineers Australia Women in Engineering promotes engineering as a viable career path for females. My experience delivering school presentations and developing activities for female students means I can help shape activities that the Sydney division runs for school students to have greater impact and message."
Ashwini has also led and delivered a number of initiatives involving collaboration with industry sponsors promoting gender diversity in these fields. Lucy Mentoring, an innovative leadership program for undergraduate women studying engineering or IT at UTS, provides female students with invaluable support from an experienced industry mentor and 35 hours of work experience.
"Working on the delivery of the Lucy Mentoring Program has shown me the value of mentoring and industry participation and sponsorship. I believe the involvement of industry in addressing gender issues is crucial to achieving change across sectors.
"In my advisory role to the board I intend to highlight the different ways industry can support current students and promote retention and success for industry professionals."
Ashwini was a Lucy mentee herself in 2014, mentored by the General Manager for Infrastructure at John Holland, one of Australia's leading engineering contractors. She is now working with John Holland as an undergraduate engineer while completing the final semester of her UTS degree.
UTS's long-standing WiE&IT program continues to encourage a new breed of thought-leaders in gender diversity and innovation.
The University's participation in the SAGE pilot of the ATHENA SWAN charter in Australia will allow UTS to further build on its commitment to improving the promotion and retention of women and gender minorities in science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medicine.
- UTS student Ashwini Ranjithabalan is one of two winners of the 2015 Sydney Division Engineers Australia WIE Student Scholarship Award
- Ashwini and her co-winner will now join the advisory board of Engineers Australia's Women in Engineering Sydney Division for one year as student ambassadors