Hi, I'm Kayla!
I'm in my Third Year of a Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) and Master of Engineering, majoring in Electrical and Computer Engineering. I caught up with the Women in Engineering team to chat all things engineering and offer my advice to new engineering students.
What or who inspired you to choose engineering?
Going into high school I discovered that engineering was a combination of programming, design and science, 3 of my favourite subjects so that’s when I decided I was going to study engineering in university. I always wanted to be an inventor as a child so I’m glad I’m chasing that childhood dream through engineering.
Why did you choose the discipline you are studying?
I started out with wanting to do software engineering as I enjoyed the subject digital solutions in high school, but as I progressed further into physics, I figured out I enjoyed learning about electrical circuits and the theory that goes into electricity.
I am also fascinated with the technology and designing that goes into both vintage and modern computer systems which was what made me choose the computer engineering major.
What is one thing about university or engineering that you wished you knew earlier?
I wish that someone had told me to keep going to my tutorials for most of my subjects, even if I think I fully understood the content in the lectures. I had a bad habit of not going to tutorials that I thought were ‘easy’. Now that I attend tutorials regularly, I realise that it’s the perfect place to practice exam style questions and ask for help.
What made you pick engineering at the University of Queensland over other universities?
I was on a trip to Brisbane exploring different universities and accommodation options as I knew I wanted to study in Brisbane. UQ stood out to me the most as I absolutely loved how nice the campus was, especially the great court and UQ lakes. UQ also offered computer engineering, a major I am interested in and offers it with the combined bachelor/masters of engineering.
Give us your best tip for first-year engineering students?
Never believe it’s too early for networking. Go out and connect with fellow university friends and companies you never know when it might come in handy. Communication skills are a very important skill to have as an engineer.
Tell us your favourite example of amazing engineering?
In January, I had the chance to tour the Spring-8 Synchrotron facility in Sayo, Japan. Getting to see the sheer size and scale of the technology that goes into building a particle accelerator is absolutely amazing. The fact that we've figured out how to accelerate particles to almost the speed of light is nothing short of remarkable. The research that goes on in the facility as well is incredible, I got to listen in as to how the particle accelerator can be used to study how to improve car efficiency.
What's your dream engineering job when you graduate?
My dream engineering job would be designing the hardware for computer systems like laptops and gaming consoles.
What do you hope to achieve as a WE student leader?
I hope to be able to inspire young students of the endless possibilities of engineering and to show how fun and rewarding it can be – despite the stigma of it being a difficult degree to study.
