Our trainee Quantity Surveyor, Victoria Ward, recently took part in a virtual STEM event to encourage a new generation to explore career options in construction.
STEM, which stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths, are some of the most popular subjects for students to pursue post-16 and into their careers.
Victoria gave a talk to the Year 9 students at Sir John Talbot’s School in Whitchurch about the importance of maths and science in her day-to-day role and students were given the chance to ask her questions about her job and career so far.
Victoria graduated in 2012 with a BA (Hons) in architecture and joined us in July following a number of years working in the hospitality sector. She started studying for her master’s degree in quantity surveying in September.
Victoria said: “Students are often surprised at the different career paths you can take with a background in STEM subjects. But it’s important, particularly for girls, who are under-represented in many STEM industries, to know that there are so many options available.
“Pave Aways is fantastic at supporting and providing its staff with additional training and qualifications, but by speaking to students as young as those I spoke to last week, we might have sparked an interest in them to pursue a career in our industry.”
Managing Director Steven Owen said: “Victoria is a great advocate for what can be achieved with a background in STEM, particularly with her varied career path that has led her back to the construction industry.
“Hopefully we’ll welcome some of the students Victoria spoke to back to Pave Aways in the future through one of our many apprenticeships or work experience programmes.”
It was a welcome return to the school for Pave Aways — our MD Steven was a mentor for two years for a school team in the Shropshire Star STEM challenge.
