Young Women in Engineering Open Day
DCU Women in Engineering invited transition year (TY) students from St. Marys, Glasnevin to an Open Day on campus to see first-hand what a course and career in engineering can involve. It was set up to inspire TY students and encourage them to consider a career in engineering. Figures show there is a lack of females in this sector due to a lack of knowledge presented to young women about about this field. This event aimed to change that and give these young women a new insight into a field they may not have considered otherwise!
The students had the opportunity to listen to rounded views and different perspectives of engineering, giving them an insight into the life of a female engineering student and being a female lecturer/women at work. The main focus of the Open Day was to highlight how broad a career in engineering can actually be, and the various postitions available to engineers within the sports/space/technology/renewable energy fields among others. The majority of the day was spent with hands on demonstations from both the School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering and the School of Electronic Engineering. These demos ranged from 3D printer demonstrations to building pencil catapults to a Lego design workshop. In another demo, the students had the opportunity to build and take home their very own portable phone charger! By the end of the event, many of the students said they would definitely consider engineering as a potential career path and will be including it at the top of their CAO.
This Open Day was set up and run by the Women in Engineering community in DCU. It was organised by two DCU students, Jenny Harrington, a third year mechanical engineering student, and Sunayana Kantimahanthi, a fourth year electronic engineering student. There were many volunteers on the day, mostly first and second year students. A big thank you to both St Marys, Glasnevin for participating and to everyone who helped out with organizing and running the event. This day could not have happened without all of you and we hope that you all found it to be a rewarding experience!