It might seem tricky to work in a STEM field and be a full-time campaigner for women in STEM, too. For some people, like Mamta, it comes easily. Find out more about her journey here.
Growing up
Mamta was never short of inspiration, being born in the USA to Indian parents, and then moving to Scotland to grow up. She was very curious and loved figuring out how different objects worked (often pulling them apart completely). She did many puzzles and games. This is where her love for STEM began, through a love of problem-solving. This, combined with her dad as her role model, kickstarted her career in STEM!
Early Career
She completed her Masters’s degree in Product Design at the University of Strathclyde and then moved into the industry. She has worked in many sectors, including toys (such as My Little Pony and PlayDoh) as well as chocolates (like M&M’s, Galaxy and Twix).
Design Engineering
So, what does her role as a design engineer involve? Essentially, it is a role where you transform ideas into products, testing the ideas along the way. This involves a lot of different tasks such as using CAD software to work on prototypes, looking at environmental impacts and more. Mamta works in a global team and works across many departments, researching and reporting her findings. She loves seeing products before they hit the market!
STEM Advocacy
As well as working as a design engineer, Mamta also works as an advocate for all things STEM. Mamta won the (WES) IET Young Woman Engineer of the Year Award in 2007 and hasn’t slowed down since then. She routinely speaks about her journey into STEM and encourages other young women to do so too. Setting the benchmark for the engineers of the future is important to Mamta, so keep going, keep learning, and help others!
