Bethany Shepherd

"I got a mixture of Influencer, Manager and Quality Controller. I think that these profiles fit me quite well and fit well with being an engineer. Part of my job is to make sure that everyone is engaged and understands what the problem or solution is and the effects that any changes may have. This matches the Influencer profile as I have to explain things in a way that people understand while also making sure that everyone agrees on the decision that is being made. Being an engineer means that you are often working with lots of information and details but you also have to be good at looking at the bigger picture too. This also fits within the Quality Controller job profile too. The role of Manager also suits me too - I used a lot of these skills while leading the Schools' Engineering Challenge. You have to understand and play to people’s strengths within the team in order to make the most of the team that you have and achieve the best results. Being busy both inside and out of work, I am known for being well-organised and having good time management skills in order to make the most of my time, however this doesn’t mean that I am not approachable. "

"I'm currently on the graduate scheme at BAE Systems working at Portsmouth Naval Base. As part of the graduate scheme, I move around every 6 months and have just started my 3rd placement. Before the graduate scheme, I also took a year out of my degree to conduct an Industrial Placement year at BAE before returning to university to finish my degree. So far I have worked on the new aircraft carrier, the Type 45s and am now working on the mine hunters. I have also worked on a bid project. I love the fact that I am able to experience different projects and get to meet new people. My role varies from placement to placement; from getting on-board and working on problems with ship staff to working out what impact a change to the way that a ship is operated will have on failure rates and through life costs, no two roles are the same. However, everything that I do contributes to ensuring that the Royal Navy is able to sail their ships with their desired capabilities at the time that they are needed. I really like knowing that I am contributing to something important. My starting salary for the graduate scheme was £28,000. "

"I didn't always want to be an engineer - when I was younger, I wanted to be a doctor. After my GCSEs (which included Maths, English and Physics and Chemistry) had finished, it was compulsory at my school to do 2 weeks worth of work experience. Being the youngest in my year, I wasn't able to get work experience in a hospital as I wasn't yet 16 and so I had to find something else to do. Luckily, my dad knew someone who worked at a company that built satellites so I went there for 2 weeks. I absolutely loved it, changed my mind about my future career and therefore changed my A Level subject choices. I then completed A Levels in Maths, Physics, Further Maths and Economics. During my A Levels, I was also lucky enough to be able to take part in the Engineering Education Scheme (EES) which was a 6 month project sponsored by a local engineering company. My project was to design a device to aid situational awareness for soldiers on foot patrols. There were a number of requirements that we had to take into consideration and the scheme also involved a residential stay at a university to help progress our project further.I then applied to university to study Mechanical Engineering and got into Loughborough University where I completed a Masters Degree. Halfway through my degree I completed a year in industry at BAE Systems and have since returned to them for the graduate scheme. "

"Outside of work, I like to play sport with my friends including badminton and tennis as well as going swimming. I also enjoy playing the piano, however I can’t play it as much as I like to at the moment as I don’t have a piano in my flat. I enjoy spending time with my friends and family and of course going on holidays to nice, hot, sunny places!"

"Being on a graduate scheme, I don’t really have a typical day. At the moment, I’m working on one of the Royal Navy’s minehunters which is currently undergoing a major refit. My day can sometimes be spent on board the ship solving issues with the upgrades that are being installed but sometimes I can also spend my day in meetings for the planning of the next refit period or working my way through queries at my desk. I also take the time to occasionally go into local schools and do STEM activities to encourage more young people to consider a career in STEM. As part of the graduate scheme, we are also encouraged to take part in ‘stretch’ activities; in the past these have involved organising women in engineering day events, organising induction week, being the lead for the annual schools engineering challenge and answering a business question set by a senior leader."

"I achieved 14 GCSEs ranging from A*-B including Maths, English Language, English Literature, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Geography, German, and Engineering.I then achieved A Levels in the following subjects:A Level Mathematics – A*A Level Further Mathematics – AA Level Economics – AA Level Physics – BAS Level Chemistry – BAS Level General Studies – ANext, I studied at Loughborough Engineering from 2013-2018, attaining a First Class Honours MEng Degree in Mechanical Engineering with a Diploma in Industrial Studies. I have then started a Graduate Scheme at BAE Systems."