As part of International Women's Day 2024, we spoke with the fantastic Ruth Irusquibelar who shares her unique and compelling story. Ruth is a Project Engineer at Scottish Leather Group and in her final year of her BEng (Hons) Engineering: Design and Manufacture Graduate Apprenticeship.
Tell us a little bit about yourself and why you chose the EDM course?
I’m from Argentina originally and when I was on my early 20’s I moved to Spain and lived there and then moved to Scotland in 2016. I’ve always been a dedicated student, since high school, but for different personal circumstances I could not continue further education. This was always something I wanted to do. This is why when I heard about the opportunity to study a Graduate Apprenticeship in Engineering at Strathclyde, whilst still earning a salary, I thought it was perfect for me. It basically satisfied all my needs which were studying what I like whilst allowing me to work full time.
It was not always easy because I am not a native English speaker, I am a working mum and I am a domestic abuse survivor. I have experienced difficult moments during my degree studies but studying helped me to cope with them. Being a GA EDM apprentice has changed my life for good and helped me at a personal level. As well as this it has been a great opportunity to obtain academic knowledge, work experience and launch my career.
What it means to you being a woman in engineering…
Since my passion has always been in Science and Engineering, it felt natural for me to be part of the engineering community. Regardless my personal preference, and even when we can see progress has been made for more women to the field, it is still a mainly male-dominated area. I feel I can contribute and help motivate more women to join us and help to make big changes in engineering history.
What elements of the apprenticeship do you particularly enjoy?
Gaining academic knowledge is what I most enjoyed. Studying was always something I enjoyed and when it is related to what I like to do in practice, it is even more enjoyable. I am working at the same time and using that knowledge at work is particularly rewarding.
What opportunities has there been to apply your academic learning back into the workplace?
I helped to deliver a major project in my workplace applying the project management knowledge I gained, and I am currently working on another one that would improve the manufacturing of our products. There are plenty of opportunities to apply my academic learning back in different fields in the workplace involving design, manufacturing, mechanical and electronic engineering and more.
What are your future career plans once you graduate and how has the GA influenced those?
My GA has shaped my future. I have plans to dedicate to mechanical and manufacturing engineering and gain even more experience. To start, I’d like to continue with further education completing a master’s degree and from there, I hope to professionally grow and develop my career.
