The university experience has changed markedly for women engineering students since the first women graduates gained their Bachelor of Engineering degrees from New Zealand Universities in the 1960s. The number of women enrolling has increased, and universities now offer programmes and groups to support their female students.
Standing out, fitting in
Interviewees were asked what their university experience was like.
The response from other students and staff to their presence in engineering courses was mixed. Some behaviour was supportive, some well-meaning but misguided, and other behaviour was indifferent, or in some cases, outright antagonistic.
Sometimes women felt comfortable, confident and welcome and at other times uncomfortably conspicuous. Where there were challenges, they got through with the companionship of good friends, male allies and supportive academic staff. Enjoyment and interest in the course subject matter also kept women going, determined to succeed.
Gretchen
University of Canterbury, BE – Chemical (Hons), 1968–1971
…you get noticed for all sorts of things that you needn’t be noticed for…
Gretchen was among the early women graduates from University of Canterbury engineering school. She describes the masculine culture of the school in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
My male lab partner did not speak to me for our entire year running experiments together.
When Gretchen was at engineering school, there were just two other women in her year. She describes the reaction of the male students to women in their midst, and reflects on the lack of women academic staff.
…I thought there was no difference between men and women…
Reflecting on her time at engineering school, Gretchen explains how the style of education was very male orientated, but that she did not realise this at the time.
Jan
University of Manchester, BSc – Physics (Hons), 1982–1985
University of Manchester, PhD – Electronic Engineering and Electronics, 1986–1989
…that experience has stuck with me through the rest of my academic career.
Jan describes how she chose which university to study physics at based on two very different entry interviews.
Kaye
Polytech, New Zealand Certificate in Civil Engineering, 1981
University of Auckland, BE – Civil Resource (Hons), 1998
…and I thought, sometimes there’s not so much difference between us.
Kaye was the only woman in her Polytech civil engineering course, but with a small intake of only 14 in the class she did not feel discouraged.
The staff were very good…
Kim
University of Auckland, BE – Civil, 1982–1984
University of Auckland, ME – Roading, 1985
We were less than 1%...
Kim remembers being part of a very noticeable female minority during her time as an undergraduate.
Staff were encouraging but there was no formal support for women students and no female role models or mentors. Although she felt everyone wanted her to be there, she felt deeply self-conscious.
…if I was not going to fit in, to not fit in on my terms.
Philippa
University of Canterbury, BE – Electrical, 1993–1996
University of Canterbury, PhD – Electrical, 1997–2001
It wasn’t a female-friendly environment.
Philippa and her fellow female classmates were very much made to feel their otherness in their engineering courses. She describes some of the challenges and how she got through.
…there’s that camaraderie…
…we were so far behind because we hadn’t had the same childhood…
You just conformed to the stereotype unthinkingly to get through.
Sina
University of Canterbury, BE – Civil (Hons), 1996–2000
…the culture is very much geared towards the dominant majority…
Sina describes the culture in the engineering school and her thoughts on the Western framework within which engineering is taught.
It wasn’t something I questioned until I was much older…
I had a bit of flexibility from UC and I’ll always be grateful…
Sina’s final years of her engineering degree came with an extra challenge as she and her partner balanced study with parenthood.
Sheridan
University of Canterbury, BE – Civil (Hons), 2003–2006
…it was an awesome culture…
Sheridan had a great time at university and with around 20 other women in her civil engineering intake she felt like there were quite a few other women around.
Charlotte
University of Auckland, BE – Civil (Hons), 2004–2007
University of Auckland, PhD – Civil, 2008–2012
I had a fantastic group of fellow engineers…
Charlotte recalls that even though the percentage of women in her courses wasn’t great she had support through a fantastic group of friends.
Jess
University of Canterbury, BE – Civil, 2011–2014
University of Canterbury, ME – Earthquake Engineering, 2016–2018
…something you just kind of got used to…
Te Rina
University of Canterbury, BE – Electrical and Electronics, 2020–2023
…why can’t they put us together…?
Te Rina shares her first impressions of the welcome event for first pro electrical and talks about the value of her strong friend group.
Lily
University of Canterbury, BE – Civil, 2020–2024
A statistic that is still very low is wahine Māori in engineering…
Part of the club?
University engineering societies have traditionally been bastions of male culture. Some women stayed away, seeing nothing there for them. Others joined with the aim of changing the culture, and others felt comfortable there and had a great experience.
Women engineering students also formed their own groups for mutual support and connection. These started informally and ebbed and flowed with the enthusiasm and availability of students to run them, before later becoming officially established.
Some of the interviewees were active participants in women’s groups, helping to establish them and organise events. Others made a conscious decision not to take part, either not feeling they needed them or not wanting to be part of something that singled them out as different when all they wanted to do was fit in and make it on their own.
Gretchen
University of Canterbury, BE – Chemical (Hons), 1968–1971
We did not form a cabal or a support group…
Gretchen was good friends with the two other women in her year but did not look to form a wider support group of women engineers at university. She explains why not.
Rebecca
University of Auckland, BE – Chemical and Materials, 1988–1993
…I was busy trying to save the world from all directions…
Rebecca was heavily involved with student societies on campus and was the first woman to be elected President of the Auckland University Engineering Society (AUES).
Rebecca discusses what the club was like at the time she was at university in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Sharee
University of Canterbury, BE – Electrical, 1990–1993
University of Canterbury, PhD – Electrical and Electronics, 1997–2001
…it didn’t seem to offer anything for me…
Sharee describes the culture of the University of Canterbury Engineering Society (ENSOC) and why she chose not to join.
…a chance to get to know some of the other women doing engineering.
At University of Canterbury in the early 1990s a Women in Engineering group was just finding its feet. Sharee describes the activity of the group at that time.
Philippa
University of Canterbury, BE – Electrical, 1993–1996
University of Canterbury, PhD – Electrical, 1997–2001
…it’s evolved a lot, the kind of support you can get access to…
Philippa explains why she didn’t get involved in the Women in Engineering group in her undergraduate years.
Kate
University of Canterbury, BE – Electrical, 1997–2000
I was very enthusiastic and idealistic…
Kate was an enthusiastic member of the Women in Engineering Group at University of Canterbury, and in her second pro year took on the leadership of the group.
She was driven to change the world and encourage more female high school leavers to enrol in engineering.
…they made commemorative beer glasses…
Sheridan
University of Canterbury, BE – Civil (Hons), 2003–2006
…it wasn’t just about drinking and partying…
Charlotte
University of Auckland, BE – Civil (Hons), 2004–2007
University of Auckland, PhD – Civil, 2008–2012
I do very clearly remember making the decision not to be [part of WEN]...
Charlotte chose not to join the Women in Engineering Network. She describes her feelings at the time.
Jess
University of Canterbury, BE – Civil, 2011–2014
University of Canterbury, ME – Earthquake Engineering, 2016–2018
…I was already standing out enough…
Jess didn’t join the Women in Engineering (WiE) group at University of Canterbury. She explains why.
Zoe
University of Auckland, BE – Civil and Environmental (Hons) and BCom – Finance and Management, 2019–2023
…I went to quite a few events in first year…
Zoe was an active member of the Women Engineering Network (WEN) in her first year at University of Auckland and in her second year took on an event coordinator role.
Internships
Work experience has always been an important component of engineering degrees in New Zealand. For early women engineering students, the first challenge was securing an internship. Some companies were not prepared to take women or struggled to accommodate them. Students often found themselves the only woman working in an engineering role at a particular workplace.
First work experiences varied greatly, some were inspiring and empowering and others incredibly daunting. No matter the challenges, women made it through with courage and humour.
Gretchen
University of Canterbury, BE – Chemical (Hons), 1968–1971
The third year I went up to Wairakei Village…
Gretchen talks about the places she worked over the summer breaks to fulfil the practical requirement for her degree.
Janis
Massey University, BTech – Biotechnology, 1965–1968
It was interesting working in the meat industry because there were no women there…
Janis found her internships through word of mouth and by writing to companies. She gained good experience from a variety of places. She talks about some of her experiences.
Kim
University of Auckland, BE – Civil, 1982–1984
University of Auckland, ME – Roading, 1985
...and this letter came back ‘Dear Mr Kim Rutter, we would love to see you…'
When Kim turned up on the first day of her internship, the company was surprised. They were expecting a man. She describes what happened next and how the internship went.
Sharee
University of Canterbury, BE – Electrical, 1990–1993
University of Canterbury, PhD – Electrical and Electronics, 1997–2001
I think they found it quite novel having me around…
Sharee did internships at Hawke’s Bay Regional Council, Hawke’s Bay Electric Power Board and at Telecom.
She enjoyed her time on internship and was treated with respect and kindness.
Philippa
University of Canterbury, BE – Electrical, 1993–1996
University of Canterbury, PhD – Electrical, 1997–2001
…the first part of that experience was all the things you don’t want…the second part was fantastic…
Kate
University of Canterbury, BE – Electrical, 1997–2000
…which I didn’t really know how to deal with…
Kate was the only woman engineer at the company she interned with, and this was not always a comfortable position to be in.
Sheridan
University of Canterbury, BE – Civil (Hons), 2003–2006
…it surprised them just as much as it surprised me…
Sheridan completed her first internship in Auckland. It was enjoyable and she learnt lots, but the second internship was a really special experience…
Charlotte
University of Auckland, BE – Civil (Hons), 2004–2007
University of Auckland, PhD – Civil, 2008–2012
I found that incredibly intimidating…
Jess
University of Canterbury, BE – Civil, 2011–2014
University of Canterbury, ME – Earthquake Engineering, 2016–2018
…the biggest thing I got out of that was the connections…
Jess felt encouraged to see women in senior engineering roles while she was on internship.
Rosita
University of Auckland, BE – Electrical and Electronic (Hons), 2013–2016
…they act different on site than when they’re off site.
Rosita had supportive colleagues on her internships but found the culture on construction sites uncomfortable.
Alice
University of Auckland, BE – Civil and Environmental (Hons), 2014–2017
It was quite a big shift from studying…
For Alice, starting her first internship was a bit scary but turned out to be a rewarding experience.
Te Rina
University of Canterbury, BE – Electrical and Electronics, 2020–2023
…it was a lightbulb [moment]…
In Te Rina’s final year of high school, electrical distribution network company, Orion, came to talk to students about their work. It resonated with Te Rina so much that she contacted them about work experience. It’s a relationship that has continued through her time at university.
She talks about her latest internship experience with Orion.
