Frantzeska Nanopoulou

"I can definitely say that the personality types fit well with my role as a civil engineer. In my day-to-day job I have to coordinate different tasks, assess priorities, and communicate with people who are involved in the different projects that I am working on. In terms of managing, I have the responsibility of managing projects and people, and this requires adaptability and an open mind - especially listeninh to the requirements of a project or an individual. Quality control is definitely needed in my job as I have to make sure that every new design is prepared to a high quality standard. It is also something that personally I put a lot of effort into, as I want to ensure that everything is done in a correct way and checked before it is finished."

"I am a Civil and Structural Engineer, working in a small engineering team responsible for the conservation and maintenance of historic structures in Scotland. My work includes designing structures and elements for the preservation of historic monuments as well as new structures which form part of the historic environment. The aspects of my everyday work are quite varied as they include not only design but also site visits, structural monitoring, communication with colleagues, and advising on engineering matters on site. I also get the chance to participate in research through projects with universities which is something I really enjoy as I believe that research and practical application should be connected. Through the years I have worked in this field, I have learnt many things and I am learning, it is so exciting to work with historic structures!"

"The path to my current role is not the traditional UK one as I completed my school and University studies in Greece (where I'm from!). Since school I have liked mostly science subjects, and I had an idea of what I wanted as a career but I made up my mind only after the final exams. I had to sit national exams (similar to A-Levels/Highers) and the results of these defined which university departments I could choose from as every one has a different minimum grade requirement. The exams I sat were on Maths, Physics, Chemistry, Biology and one was on Greek language (essay writing). I then chose to study Civil Engineering as I found it quite fascinating and interesting, plus my father was working in construction sector so he influenced me a lot!Following that, I came to the UK for an Erasmus placement which gave me a very good working experience in a research environment and then I decided to continue my studies and I studied for an MSc course in Structural Engineering. Following that, I worked as a KTP (Knowledge Transfer Partnership) Associate between a pre-cast concrete company and the university, the aim of which was to develop new products for the pre-cast concrete sector and it gave me huge experience in concrete design and testing as well as project management. Now I am working with historic structures, quite different to concrete but what I learnt from my first job has stayed with me since then!"

"I love reading books and researching different topics. I also like travelling and exploring different cultures. I love cooking and baking and going for walks in nature."

"Not every day is the same in my job which is something I really like! My work schedule varies depending on the tasks, but typically I am doing structural design calculations for different works in the properties in our care. I have to prepare a full set of calculations and drawings for works which are then passed to our in-house conservation team, or will go out to tender (requiring me to also prepare tender documents). I also supervise the works on site and have to answer to technical queries as the works progress.I also organise and conduct site visits for inspections in our properties in care ,and also monitor buildings for movement. This can be by monitoring a crack for opening or conducting a survey to detect movement over time using surveying equipment. The results of these surveys inform the decisions on repairs needed.I also have to communicate a lot with other disciplines inside and outside the organisation, whether it is to ask for information or to discuss about upcoming works. Collaboration is very important as we want to make sure that every decision we make is well informed."

"Maths, Physics, Biology, Chemistry, Greek language - Exams taken at final stage at school in order to get into universityBEng (Hons) Civil EngineeringMSc Structural Engineering"