"My personality types are Coach, Manager and Quality Controller. I work as a Project Manager and use aspects of all of these personality types in my job.My Coach personality type means I have strong listening and relationship skills, so I can motivate and inspire the team I manage.My Manager personality type helps me to plan and organise my project well, so that I know when things need to happen and how much they will cost. I can see the bigger picture and share that vision with my team.My Quality Controller personality type means that I am good with detail. This means that, when I need to, I can understand the detail of what when and how tasks need to be done on the project."

"I work as a Project Manager, which means I plan, co-ordinate, monitor and control projects. 'Projects' are different from the normal everyday work that companies do because projects create change for the business. This means it is very exciting to be a Project Manager, because the work we are doing is always something new for the business.Being a Project Manager is also really interesting because there is a lot of variety. When one project finishes, you can move on to another project, where you are working towards something completely different than before. I have managed Engineering Research and Development projects, Health and Safety projects, Communications projects, and am now managing Diversity and Inclusion projects in Human Resources.The reason that it's possible to have so much variety as a Project Manager is that Project Managers do not have to understand all of the detail. For example, if I was Managing a project which was aiming to build a bridge, I wouldn't have to know the intricate details of how to built a bridge - I would have a team of expert Engineers to help me to understand that. My job would be to plan what activities need to be done, when they going to be done, who is going to do them, how much they will cost etc. Once the plan is in place, I would then regularly communicate with my team of Engineers to make sure they are on track with the plan. If there are any problems, I will step in to help and to re-plan the project if needed."

"After school, I had no idea what I really wanted to do as a job. I have so many different interests and enjoy learning about new things all the time, so I couldn't pick one career path. I went to university, where I did a broad degree which covered lots of different areas. This helped me to keep my options open while I figured out what I wanted to do! What I later realised was that having lots of different interests actually made Project management a really great option for my career, because I get to experience and learn about something new on each project.After university, I decided to apply to Graduate Schemes and picked a Project Management Graduate Scheme because the job description sounded exactly like it fit with my skills. I have always been very good at planning, organising and leading other people to carry out those plans. After the Graduate Scheme, I applied for permanent roles within the same company.I have only been managing projects for 2 years, so I am still quite early in my career. But project management can take you far and can offer you so many exciting opportunities."

"In my spare time, I like to write poetry. Working in a STEM industry doesn't mean you have to be completely scientific and mathematical all the time - there are always ways that you can let your creative side out. Even at work, creativity and innovative thinking are key to being a great Project Manager."

"In a typical day as Project Manager, you can expect to have meetings with your project team (these are the experts working to deliver the project) to understand their progress and if they are experiencing any issues. The Project Manager tells the project team what to do, and checks to make sure they have done it. This means they need to have strong leadership skills to motivate the team and ensure the project achieves its goals.A Project Manager would also be involved in things like: developing plans for the project, forecasting the project's costs, ensuring all of the equipment is available in the right place and time, ensuring all of the staff are in the right place at the right time, working on contracts with suppliers, writing regular progress reports and presenting them to senior managers in the business. These activities mean you need to be organised to be a Project Manager!"

"I studied Maths, Biology and Geography at A-level. I then went to university and studied Finance, Accounting and Business Management. After university, I applied for several graduate schemes in different subject areas at approximately 15-20 different companies. I chose the Project Management Graduate Scheme at Network Rail.To be a Project Manager, you can have qualifications in almost any subject (you don't need to choose the same subjects as I did). Being a Project Manager isn't about the knowledge you have, it's about the skills you can offer, and how quickly you can pick up new things."