Her Story
About Olivia
I've been passionate about aerospace my entire life - I've been a huge space nerd for as long as I can remember, and I always knew this was what I wanted to do. This upcoming summer will mark about two and a half years in the engineering field, and I just started my current role at the end of May working in interiors engineering on technical operations for United Airlines. Before United, I worked in quality and operations for Woodward Incorporated, which was a great experience on the supplier side of aerospace. Now I'm on the opposite end of the engineering workflow, working for one of the companies we used to supply parts to. Day-to-day, I work very closely with my team on different projects relating to the interior of a plane - seats, emergency equipment, overhead bins, aisleways, all of that. It's a lot of collaboration, trying to solve different issues that are brought to our attention or improve upon things as we get new aircraft. That engineering iterative process is what I love. I'm really proud of how I've been able to get experience this early on and figure out what within the realm of engineering I enjoy most, because it's such a vast field. Contributing to projects that are affecting people every day and making a difference within my field is what I value most from my job.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Olivia
01What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would tell them, don't be discouraged by the work itself. Sometimes it feels really overwhelming getting started in the field, just because there's a lot to learn, but there's people that you can lean on and work with. Rely on your team - you'll be able to figure it out. They're there to help you, and they want to see you succeed. So, don't be afraid to ask for help, and believe in yourself.
02What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
There are definitely less women in the field, and I think early on in my career, I had very bad imposter syndrome about the whole thing, not feeling like I saw myself in the role that I wanted to be doing. So it was really challenging to kind of realize, you know, I'm capable of doing hard things, and I want to do this, so I'm gonna do it. And not being intimidated by that.
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