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A university in Medway is calling on more women to enrol in its engineering courses as the UK continues to languish behind the rest of Europe when it comes to female engineers.

With International Women in Engineering Day taking place on Sunday, June 23, it is rather fitting that the University of Greenwich Medway Campus will be holding an Open Day about the engineering courses on offer on Saturday, June 29 for people interested to find out more.

In what is a largely male-dominated industry, the university is determined to get more women students enrolling on the course.

According to last year’s figures from The Women's Engineering Society (WES), the UK hit rock bottom in terms of the percentage of female engineering professionals in Europe - standing at just 10% of the entire workforce when compared to other nations such as Latvia, Bulgaria and Cyprus that lead with almost 30%.

“Engineering is an interesting, diverse, and worthwhile career and, as engineering impacts on every aspect of our everyday lives, it is really important that more young people choose to become engineers,” said Deborah Sims who is a Senior Lecturer in Civil Engineering at the university.

“Over 50% of the population is female, so we really need more women to be involved in designing and creating our environment, technology and products so that the world we live in is better adapted for everyone’s needs.”

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE ENGINEERING COURSES

Increasing the number of women in the industry is not only vital for gender diversity but also equally important to the UK economy with STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) companies contributing 26% of the country’s GDP or just under £127.6 trillion to the public purse.

International Women in Engineering Day aims to raise awareness about the profile of women in engineering and focuses attention on the amazing career opportunities available to them in the industry.

One such engineer is Ayse Cagla Balaban who moved to the UK from Turkey in 2012 to study engineering and is now also employed at the University of Greenwich Medway Campus as a teaching demonstrator in one of the laboratories.

“I am so proud to be an engineer in a male-dominated area and I really appreciate that the University of Greenwich helps me to be better in my field day by day,” she said.

“Upon deciding to move to the UK, I did some research and considered many different kinds of universities.

“I finally decided to go on an MSc program in general Civil Engineering with lectures in some specific fields.

“The University of Greenwich offered exactly what I had been searching for and so the decision was an easy one.”

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE COURSES AVAILABLE

All the engineering degrees at the university share a common first year before students go on to specialise in their chosen area of engineering.

Most of the engineering disciplines offer a four-year course which leads to a Master’s degree and an 'extended' degree which includes a foundation year.

“I certainly recommend studying and working at the Medway campus,” continued Ayse.

“The campus is very beautiful and the natural surroundings here are amazing.

“We always have an opportunity to relax outside even for just a short period while there is also really friendly staff here. Everyone is always willing to help each other and students.”

To learn more about the University of Greenwich Medway Campus and its engineering courses, visit the official website by clicking here.