Based in our Sheffield office, Fatou has been working at Waldeck since 2023, where at the age of 34 we welcomed her as a graduate mechanical engineer. Fatou completed her masters in Mechanical Engineering at Queen Mary University of London in 2020.
Fatou believes that “it’s never too late to follow your dreams.”
We caught up with Fatou to hear more about her Early Careers Development Programme journey so far:
Hi Fatou! What has your education journey been like?
Not the easiest! I took a long gap from education after completing my A-levels in The Gambia back in 2008 with bad grades. In 2015, I decided to go back to education and studied what I loved the most – Engineering! I enrolled onto the “Access to Higher Education Diploma” in Engineering at Kingston College where I later gained admission to Queen Mary University of London.
My first year at university was very challenging as I failed maths and got an average of 2:2. I remember crying to my friend and his advice was: “You can either cry the whole day over something you cannot change, or you could make sure it does not happen again.”
I followed his advice and with dedication and hard work, I achieved 1st class results and graduated with a first class masters in Engineering (MEng).
What are some of the most interesting projects you’ve worked on?
I have worked on many interesting projects, starting with Kingsway and Chesterfield hospitals where I did the ventilation design for both hospitals and learned a lot about ventilation systems on the project.
I also worked on the Sky-House residential and commercial projects – Olive Lane and Waverley Central where I was the mechanical lead on both projects designing their mechanical services.
What motivates you in your work?
I am passionate about my work and that’s what keeps me motivated.
How does the company support your professional growth and development?
We have monthly meetings with our allocated Early Careers Development mentors where our technical competence and core skills are reviewed, and areas of weakness are worked on. This also includes setting timescales for meeting the requirements needed for chartership.
Our team also have monthly knowledge sharing workshops whereby updates to regulations and knowledge is shared. Every month we have electrical and mechanical CDPs from manufacturers to keep our skills and knowledge up to date with products that we use in our designs and changes to regulations.
What are your career aspirations for the next five years?
I would like to develop and hone my leadership skills and knowledge which will allow me to progress thereby taking on more responsibilities within the company by mentoring junior members of the team. During the next five years, I would also like to obtain my engineering chartership.
What tips would you give to others starting out in this industry?
Always understand the big picture by learning what the project is for and why you are doing the tasks given.
Additionally, irrespective of how small a project is, always give it your 100% and use it as an opportunity to learn new skills. Finally, always ask when things become unclear!
What do you enjoy doing outside of work?
I enjoy doing a variety of different things such as, going to the gym, going on long walks and cooking!
Find out more about Early Careers Development Programme here>