What's it really like to study engineering? And how can your university experience help to shape your career?
In this week’s episode of But Seriously, What is Engineering? we hear from two recent UQ graduates and best friends, Karminee Karuna and Karen Zhou.
Karminee and Karen reflect on their inspirations to pursue engineering, their journeys as university students, and how their friendship has enhanced their engineering careers.
Listen in to hear how they found their tribe and built connections through their university years and the importance of maintaining those contacts as they move into the industry.
Whether they were sharing a dorm on a semester abroad supporting disadvantaged communities or championing diversity together through UQ's Women in Engineering program, their friendship and support has seen them achieve some amazing things. And they're just getting started.
To learn more about studying engineering at UQ visit the Future Students website.
Duration: 24:41 mins
More information
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Meet our guests
Karen Zhou
Karen is a Brisbane native and graduated from The University of Queensland in 2019 with a Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) (Chemical). She has just started her first professional role as a graduate process engineer in the oil and gas industry, specifically in the energy infrastructure and gas transmission sector. In her current role, Karen works closely with the operations team and provides day-to-day engineering support to ensure a vast portfolio of assets run safely and reliably.
As a graduate, Karen continually strives for new learning and development opportunities so that she can build a strong foundation of engineering knowledge to one-day provide safe, practical, and human-centred design solutions.
During her time at university, Karen was fortunate to have been a Women in Engineering student leader for three consecutive years. This role allowed her to mentor high school students and champion the numerous benefits and opportunities associated with STEM careers. Karen hopes to continue her passion for STEM advocacy throughout her career and has recently become a member of the UQ Women in Engineering Alumni Ambassador Council.
Karminee Karuna
Karminee grew up in Townsville and moved to Brisbane for university, where she studied chemical and environmental engineering at UQ. After graduating in 2019 she started as a graduate with BHP and currently works at Goonyella Riverside Mine as a Process Engineer. She’s passionate about inclusion and diversity in the engineering industry. In her spare time, she loves to travel, cook and spend time with loved ones.
