Two weeks ago I discussed the need to develop talent in STEM fields. Some very successful women I know took part and shared their stories with me to promote those fields and encourage women to pursue careers in areas that have been underrepresented by women. Slowly, young girls will follow in their footsteps and create an equal workplace. Luckily, I have two more interviews to share. Enjoy learning about these ladies and their careers! Brittany Daniels Construction Engineer My days are quite varied, and my work schedule is uncommon. I work 28 days straight, and then I get 28 days off. It’s called a rotational schedule. As a construction engineer, I am responsible for managing the construction execution of facility upgrade projects. I work in an oil and gas processing plant in Kazakhstan (which is located on the border of Europe and Asia and shares its northern border with Russia). In a typical day, I meet with construction contractors to plan upcoming work or visit project sites to understand progress of current projects and resolve construction issues. I also perform project management tasks in the office which include developing construction plans, writing and negotiating construction contracts, and reviewing engineering designs. My job is very dynamic and work is performed in three languages, so I am constantly working with translators. I am learning a little bit of Russian and Kazakh, but have a long way to go! I became very interested in pursuing an engineering degree during my junior year of high school when I took AP Chemistry and Calculus. I had a very inspirational chemistry teacher, which is why I chose out of all the engineering disciplines to major in chemical engineering. During college, I started to think about my future career and what it would be like to go to work every day. Then I thought about what type of work sounded the most appealing to me. I am a very active person who enjoys working with others, so I knew I did not want to sit at a computer desk all day. I had an internship in college where I worked on engineering projects in the oil fields and loved working outside. I got to where I am today by working hard, being genuine and respectful of others, and seeking opportunities to network and demonstrate the skills and knowledge I gained in college and in the workplace. Women engineers are still a minority in my field, so I have had to work harder to earn respect and prove myself with individuals who are not used to working with women, especially women who are in positions of authority. I have found success in my job by acting culturally sensitive and treating everyone I work with respectfully. I seek input from others and listen attentively. I am quick to publically recognize strong performance by my coworkers. I have noticed these simple things go a long way. Women have just as much potential as men to be successful in any career they choose, and historically we have been underrepresented in STEM careers. It is important for women who are interested and have an aptitude for math and science to follow their dreams and find a career that is a strong fit. Only you can decide what career is best for you. {For women interested in pursuing a career in this profession} Seek opportunities in your community to learn more about engineering and different types of jobs and industries. If you know someone, a parent, relative, neighbor, or friend’s parent who works in a profession in which you are interested, ask if you can shadow them at work or volunteer in the office to learn more about their company and what their job is like. For example, if you are interested in being a doctor, see if you can volunteer at your local hospital and shadow doctors. You never know unless you ask! You might be surprised how many people are willing to say “Yes” and share their career experience with you or invite you to visit their office or work facility. Brittany Bannish, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, Department of Mathematics and Statistics University of Central Oklahoma As a professor, my day-to-day work can vary quite a bit. Some days I spend most of my time teaching, planning lectures and assignments, grading, and meeting with students. Other days I spend much of my time in meetings (about everything from improving a particular course we offer to planning the next Math Club meeting to making decisions about our Master’s program). Still, other days are dedicated to research. As a mathematical biologist, I use mathematics to help answer questions arising from biology. I collaborate with scientists from all over the world (Pennsylvania, Utah, Russia, Hungary, the UK), as well as work with undergraduate students at my university. Most of my research involves writing mathematical models (sets of equations) that describe complicated biological processes, solving the models using a computer (I have had to learn much more computer programming than I expected I would need to know!), and reading lots of biological literature to see if my model results make sense, to determine the next steps I should take, and to learn what the current open questions in the field are. I also spend time talking to my collaborators over email or Skype, planning our next set of experiments or discussing the results from the most recent experiments. I love my job, but it is not something I ever “dreamed” of doing – mainly because I didn’t know this type of job existed. I have always been good at school, but I didn’t really have a passion for any particular subject. I went to Mount Holyoke College (an all women’s liberal arts college) for my bachelor’s degree and decided to major in history. I liked math enough that I planned to take one math class per semester throughout my four years, which I realized would put me very close to a double major in history and mathematics. So I thought, what the heck, and double majored. I didn’t know which subject I wanted to pursue after graduating, so I spent one summer doing a history internship in Maine, and one summer doing math research at the University of Nebraska. I had SO much more fun doing math! I had also recently learned in my Differential Equations class about something called a “predator-prey model,” which was a set of equations that could model, for example, populations of wolves and rabbits. I was hooked by this neat application of mathematics to biology, and decided to go to graduate school to study Mathematical Biology, even though my last biology class was in ninth grade. My interest in the subject really developed in graduate school, where I also learned that I love teaching. It seemed like the obvious choice, by the time I was ready to graduate with my Ph.D., to get a job as a professor. The biggest challenge to women in math, it seems to me, is the lack of women in math. It’s hard to feel like you belong when you don’t see many people who look like you. This is thankfully starting to change, but still at many colleges there are only two or three women in a given upper-division math class. I firmly believe that I would not be a mathematician today if I did not go to an all women’s college. I was not confident enough to make the most of my education if I was the only female in the class (I pretended to be tired and bored in high school, even though I loved school, because I wanted some of the boys I liked to think I was “cool”. Yikes. I am very grateful this did not continue in college!). I developed that confidence by being surrounded by other smart, driven women in math. I could see that I belonged. I think it is important to encourage more women to pursue jobs in STEM fields simply because for so many years they were NOT encouraged to do so. How many amazing scientists never came to be because the women who would have become those scientists were dissuaded and told to pursue a more “feminine” career? For young women interested in pursuing a career in mathematics, I recommend finding mentors as soon as you can. These mentors do not have to be women, they just need to be people who support you, are capable of advising you, and want to help you succeed. Math can be incredibly frustrating and difficult, and the difference between sticking with it and quitting can come down to something as simple as a “You can do this! I have felt like that, too,” from a trusted mentor. Also, don’t compare yourself to anyone; your journey is different from absolutely everyone else’s. You may often feel like you are fooling people, that you don’t really belong (look up “impostor syndrome” – this is something I have struggled with since graduate school, but I am in good company; it seems that most of the people I know also think they are impostors. We can’t all be impostors, right?!?), but you are capable, and you DO belong. Surround yourself with people who challenge you to be better, but are supportive. And if you find you’re still not enjoying math, go do something that makes you happy! It is not worth trying to make a career out of something you don’t enjoy just because you think you “should”, or because you don’t want to let anyone down, or because you’re worried it will look like you “quit.” Changing your mind and following your passions is not “quitting,” it is setting yourself up for a happier, more fulfilling life.
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Jessica Stroupe, DVM
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August 2017
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