Careers for Women in Construction

Careers for Women in Construction are readily available despite the profession being dominated by men. So, if you feel like building on a strong career path then why not consider construction. X-Cel talks to the head of Women In Construction about her career in this industry

Why Choose A Career In Construction?
I used to feel a little embarrassed when people asked me that. I would answer “kind of by accident”, but after 18 years working in the Construction Industry I realise I am not alone!

A Career in Construction
I had never really planned on a career in Construction and it was only as I was sitting my A levels that I thought I had better consider what I was going to do for a living.

I knew I wanted to go onto further education and take a degree, I knew I wanted to work in an Industry which had good long term career prospects and a strong professional reputation. The opportunity to travel and have variety was also important, and to be challenged and have a tangible output from my works meant a lot to me. I also wanted to be paid a decent wage!

Fortunately for me I had a friend who knew what he wanted to do, he wanted to be a Quantity Surveyor. He told me about it, I thought, that sounds ok, I fancy that, and so my path in Construction began as a trainee Quantity Surveyor, doing a day release BSc(Hons) in Quantity Surveying as a sponsored student.

Trainee Quantity Surveyor
The first years on site were tough, out every day in all weathers, doing all the jobs nobody wanted to do and only being allowed indoors to make the tea. I’m very happy to say conditions on site have much improved now and certainly the opportunities given to students.

But I survived it all, and after 5 years came out with my degree and by then was a Surveyor running my own project. It wasn’t very glamorous, a telephone exchange with no windows, but it was mine and a great feeling of empowerment, Construction certainly helps you to grow up fast! Over the years, I worked on a number of projects including retail, refurbishment, warehouses, sewage treatment works, hospitals, schools, army barracks, office blocks and even helped built a helicopter pad.

My career progressed from trainee to assistant surveyor, senior to managing surveyor. I then had the opportunity to work as a Project Manager for 5 years in a PFI division.
In 2003 I joined Skanska as a Commercial Manager on the £500 million refurbishment of the Ministry of Defence, the largest project of its type ever carried out at that time, and was proud of the team that delivered it not only on budget, but also ahead of time.

Working in Construction
Working in Construction brings new and exciting challenges, no two days are ever the same and nothing makes me more proud than to be able to point at a building on a skyline and know that I was part of a team that created that.

Construction enhances peoples lives providing better places for them to live and work, it shapes our landscape and the way we work and play, I can honestly say that the work we do changes people’s lives and that is something to be very proud of, so when people ask me now about my choice of Construction as a career, I say “best mistake I ever made!”

If you are interested in a career in construction contact:

The National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC):
www.nawic.co.uk
admin@nawic.co.uk.

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