Nicole Faulkner, 'I've always been accepted as an equal'
My name's Nicole and I'm a Project Engineer. My interest in engineering started at a young age as I was always excited by building things and how things where made and put together. I looked up to my father who worked in the construction and water industry – he always helped and supported me throughout my journey in this industry and without his support, I wouldn’t be where I am today!
I was at the age when I was deciding what A levels to take when my school enrolled out a brand new BTEC Engineering course, and that’s when I discovered the path that I wanted to go down.
The course included everything I had always been interested in and it was a perfect fit for me.
It was only myself and one other girl in the class out of 15 boys and at first, it was quite intimidating especially as I was quite shy as person. After the first few lessons it was not as bad as I thought it would be, and we fit right in.
"Predominantly in this industry you are going to be outnumbered as a woman, but I never really gave it much thought as I really wanted to become a civil engineer and follow my dream. I have never felt out of place, I never felt I was treated differently and have always been accepted as an equal."
I have made many friends through following this career path, male and female, and am continuing to enjoy my journey as an engineer!
If I had to give one piece of advice, it would be - just because engineering is seen as a predominantly a ‘’man’s environment’’, this doesn’t mean you can’t or won’t fit in. The world is changing and we are all learning from each other.