Tag Archives: aerospaceengineering

Boeing Graduate Scheme – 3 Months In

I’m back at Boeing!!

After the hectic time that was my final year of university and a lovely long summer I am now in full time employment!

I loved my internship with Boeing ever so much so as soon as that ended I knew I wanted to come back to Boeing as a graduate engineer. I went through the interview process during my final year of my degree and I secured myself a position on the graduate scheme in January.

I have started my engineering graduate scheme with Boeing! The graduate scheme is 2 years long, consisting of four 6 month rotations in different parts of the company. We are advised to do one rotation out of our function such as project management or supply chain.

I am currently 3 months into my first rotation. I am working with the Attack Helicopter Training Service based at Army Air Corps in Middle Wallop. The site provides ground and aircrew training to the Army Air Corps on the Apache Helicopter

Sadly I cannot take photos on the site where I work due to security rules so I don’t have many photos to share but hopefully I can describe all that I have been doing in detail so you get the picture!

My first week was so much fun, I got to meet everyone who works on the Boeing site and find out all about the training they provide to the army – I got a flight in the simulator (I didn’t crash which was an achievement!) and I also got a huge overview of all the ground crew training which includes weapons loading and aircraft refuelling. I also got a little Boeing bundle which had a very nice mug in it, as you can see I was very happy with it!

The focus of my work has been on the Longbow Crew Trainer (LCT) which is the Apache AH-64 E model flight simulator. I have been working with the Simulator Engineers and have been working on shifts for the first time ever. It was a bit weird to start with because with the late shift its almost like you have two full days in one!

One of the highlights of the first few months has got to be the graduate welcome event in Crawley where we all got to meet everyone else who is on the graduate scheme (I have pictures for this section!!). This was the first time all the Boeing graduates had got together, it was so lovely meeting everyone. A few of us had been interns at the same time so I knew lots of faces already but it was great to see everyone, old and new! The locations of the graduate placements range from Lossiemouth to Yeovil so we are all over the UK which makes it even more fantastic that we get to meet up with one another in person.

On the Crawley campus there is Boeing Flight Services Training, this is where pilots from multiple airlines and companies go to learn to fly Boeing commercial aircraft.

There is also the exclusive 787 training suite and during our trip to Crawley everyone got to fly in the 787 Dreamliner simulator. I loved the experience, it is truly amazing to feel what it is like to fly a real aircraft.

If you ever get the opportunity to have a go in any form of simulator go for it! 

It was so much fun and really very different from the Apache LCT. The flight controls differ a lot from a helicopter to a fixed wing aircraft.

Back in Middle Wallop – I also spent a month working with the ground crew team, they teach the Attack Helicopter Basic and Advance courses. I took part in both and enjoyed every minute of it. I was even awarded a certificate for my contribution and work which I was rather pleased with!

I got to go up to Wattisham Airfield where the Basic training starts. It was great to go somewhere different and to actually see the Apache aircraft in real life!! Before then I had not seen an Apache – only been in the simulators and on the training equipment.

As you can probably tell I have had an incredible first few months and can’t wait to see what the next have in store for me. I will be off to another location and job role before I know it so I will keep you all updated with my next steps.

Thank you very much for reading this blog post. If you have started a new job or graduate scheme recently please tell us how is it going below!

Maisie

2 Sisters in STEM

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I Have Finished My Aerospace Engineering Degree!

It has been one rollercoaster of a year but I have finished my BEng in Aerospace Engineering! It still hasn’t really sunk in but I am so incredibly happy to have completed this little chapter of my life.

I am currently at a big turning point in my life and I cannot wait to see what the future has in store for me! It is a bit of a scary and uncertain time but I am so looking forward to get into the ‘real world’.

But for now I am still trying to process the fact I have finished my academic career! I have finished my aerospace engineering degree – the thing I wanted to do since I was about 12 years old!

I have been a little bit quiet on the blog recently, well really for most of this year! I had to get my head down and try to finish my degree. I would be lying if I said it has been easy but I am so happy to have come out the other side and to be well and truly done!

It was rather peculiar trying to settle back into university life after my year long internship in 2019-2020 but my fabulous flat mates made it much easier to adjust back. I really don’t know how I would have managed without them! I moved back to Sheffield last September and lived there for almost the whole academic year – apart from December as I came back home for Christmas. Due to the Covid-19 restrictions in place I was not able to go into university to labs or lectures, like so many others at university this year. This was a real shame as the University of Sheffield has so much to offer in their engineering facilities, but it couldn’t be helped! On the bright side I was very pleased my flat mates and I got such great accommodation this year as we basically spent every second in it!!

Most of this year has involved me just being sat at my desk all day because all lectures were online. My flat mate and I got in a good routine of going for a walk after finishing our day of work so there was a little bit of structure. However, when it came to the end of our final semester, where deadlines always seem to come one after the other in very quick succession, it was a lot more difficult to keep to a set schedule! Copious amounts of Yorkshire tea helped us make it through those tough weeks but it was well worth it! I actually think the increase in the amount of coursework in this final year may have helped me. I do not perform as well as I would like in exams so the chance to show my knowledge and understanding in an assignment makes me feel much better – even if the deadlines do pile up towards the end of the year!

You will probably be wondering when my graduation ceremony will be! Sadly at the University of Sheffield we only have a virtual online graduation this year so I am rather upset about this (no graduation gown photographs on the mantle piece this year!). But thankfully there are talks of the graduation ceremonies being rearranged and held in person next year in March or the summer. I really hope this goes ahead, I think mum, dad and Lily are even more keen for it to happen than me!

But in all seriousness I am actually so proud of myself for getting to where I am today. I had a really tough 2nd year and was worried it would ruin my chances at even getting a degree! After a year out doing my internship and then coming back to university during a global pandemic I have done my best and succeeded! There have been ups and downs, I have worked bloody hard and I am truly proud of what I have achieved!

This academic year has been incredible and also stressful but now it’s onto a new chapter! I start my Boeing engineering graduate scheme in October so I cannot wait to get started with that! But for now I am going to enjoy this summer – if you have any suggestions on where to visit in the UK or recommendations for days out please comment them below!

Maisie

2SistersInSTEM

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Perception of Aerospace Engineering in Female Students – Research

As 2SistersinSTEM we are incredibly interested in the perception of STEM in young people. I specifically am intrigued by the current thoughts and perception of Aerospace Engineering in female identifying students.

I am studying Aerospace Engineering at university and an one of very few females on my course. I am currently looking into how to encourage more females into Aerospace and would really appreciate it if you could help me out!

Currently I am conducting research into the perception of Aerospace Engineering in female students aged 11-18. Below I have added the Google Form so if you are within the target group I would love it if you could answer the following questions.

I would be incredibly thankful if anyone could share the link to the form so that it reaches more people! I have linked the questionnaire here and would greatly appreciate it if you could share it with teachers, parents and people of the target group!

Thank you so much for completing the form or sharing!

Maisie

2SistersinSTEM

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University During Covid-19

Maisie here! I have now come to the end of my first semester of my final year of university and I thought I would don my best Christmas jumper for the occasion!

I study Aerospace Engineering at the University of Sheffield and had a year out to do my internship in 2019-2020. It has been a busy, stressful and weird semester but surprisingly I have enjoyed it.

I thought I would reflect back on these last few months to give people a insight into my experience at university during a global pandemic.

This academic year has been a peculiar one so far! As I have said in previous posts I was on a year long internship in academic year 2019-2020 so I had no experience of university education during the pandemic. I arrived in Sheffield in September and did not really know what to expect course and contact wise!

University has been very different due to Covid-19 and it did take a while to readjust to a new way of working. From September to December I only went into university a handful of times, this was for in person tutorials and I was not a fan of the experience to be honest. There were about 15 people in a lecture theatre that usually seats 300, it felt quite isolating in that sense but I did enjoy seeing my lecturer and working through exam questions – all from a distance. On campus and in university buildings there are a lot of one way systems and safety measures implemented, this is really great to see but sometimes it just doesn’t feel like university. I do feel sorry for students who have just joined university because they are definitely not getting the full experience I got in my first year, real lectures, contact hours with tutors and labs!

I am definitely a bit of an introverted person in general, so having to socially distance and stay inside has not affected me in a huge way. I do love a night out or a good old catch up in a pub but as I am in my final year I knew I couldn’t be going to Roar (University of Sheffield’s best night out!) every Wednesday night even if everywhere was open! I had already brought down my expectations for socialising even before everything went into lockdown so it wasn’t such a shock to the system. My flat mates are an absolute saving grace to my sanity, we look out for each other and make sure we get outside and have some fresh air (this is a must!!).

On a positive note I actually feel that during this semester I could structure my days better and make the most out of the time I had. For nearly all my modules lectures were pre-recorded and my lecturers would upload them at the beginning of the week, this meant I could choose when to focus on different modules and structure my week in a way that I knew I could complete all the work required. I love a good spreadsheet so I made a sheet with all the lectures and videos I had to watch and attend each week, the feeling of being able to tick off something when I have completed it is the best!

One of my modules was an aircraft design module and 50% of the mark was for a group design project. My team was made up of 5 people in the third year of my course, as I have been out of university for my year in industry I am now in the same year as people who were in the year below. Group projects can be difficult at the best of times and the fact I have never actually met any of the people I was in the team with is rather odd, but we worked to the best of our abilities and relied heavily on Google docs to get it all done! All our meetings were conducted over Google meet and worked okay, a few people missed a meeting or two but we also had a WhatsApp group to make sure everyone knew what they should be doing for the next meeting. We submitted the report just before Christmas so hopefully we have done well!

I returned home at the beginning of December in the ‘student mass exodus’ as lots of media sources called it! I have been finishing my semester here at home and it has been a bit of a readjustment again getting used to working at home. It has been lovely seeing Mum and Dad but can sometimes be distracting when I am trying to do a lecture! I do think I find it easier to structure my day when I’m in Sheffield. But I am so thankful and grateful I could be here over the Christmas period! Overall, this semester has been a tough one but I do think I have done my best in the circumstances!

I may have completed semester 1 but now it’s onto revision for my January exams – the work doesn’t stop!

I hope you all have a great holiday whatever you celebrate, have a good old rest and eat lots of food!

Maisie

2SistersInSTEM

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Pots, Pans and Panic – Heading Back to Uni!

Hi it’s Maisie here! We have had a bit of a break from the blog over the summer but we are now back and ready to go – I have even got a swanky fringe so it’s all new round here!

It is now nearing the time that I will be going back to university, so I thought I would have a little ramble about how I am feeling regarding heading back to uni after my internship year at Boeing Defence UK.

Excited but surrounded by pots, pans and panic I will venture back to Sheffield!

I had such an incredible year at Boeing Defence UK but now it’s onto my final year at the University of Sheffield. I’m heading back to university! I am ever so excited to get back to Sheffield, I adore the city and can’t wait to live there for another year. I do know that university will be different because of the current global situation but I hope that by being sensible and safe I will still enjoy my final year at Sheffield – time for me to get my degree!

How is university going to be different?

University life is going to be different in many ways, no late nights in the library, less societies and no dancing in clubs at 3am – the latter probably being for the best! But most importantly because of the current Covid climate I won’t be in any face to face lectures (most contact will be online apart from labs and some tutorials). This means I will be on my laptop for a large percentage of my day, I will need a good laptop stand and very comfy chair – and my glasses when my eyes are exhausted from reading about aerospace materials for hours!

What is my living situation going to be like?

I lived in a flat by myself in Southsea for a year so going back to Sheffield will be a readjustment in that sense. I will be living with two of my best friends so it definitely won’t be too difficult – we all get on super well, as long as everyone does their washing up! Also, as we have said before, Lily and I have been living together during lock down, in my opinion this has been good on a lot of levels – mostly me having to adjust to living with another human being again! I think Lily was more happy with the fact I love cooking which meant she got some tasty meals (if I do say so myself!).

So what have I learnt from my internship?

I learnt so much throughout my year at BDUK and I met some incredible people. It was not only aerospace industry knowledge I gained throughout my year, I have learnt so much about the world in general and about myself (cheesy I know but it’s true!!). I definitely think I am a lot more independent now after my year of work, not just in my actions but in my thoughts and opinions. University is the first taste of freedom for most people but you are still in that little educational bubble, I think taking a step away from that has really helped me to re-evaluate lots of aspects of my life. So using all this new found knowledge I really do hope to do my best and achieve as much as I can in my final year!

How will I manage my money?

With my year at BDUK I earned an income so I was pretty comfortable with my budget and spending. Now I need to snap back to student life, I will be keeping a strict budget and managing my spending. I have to say that my weakness is second hand book shopping, I just love a book bargain so I had better keep an eye on that! I keep tabs on my money by having a spreadsheet with all my outgoing payments, including rent, utility bills and also food shops – lily has told me about an app she uses called EMMA so I may have to have a look at that before I start my new year and new spreadsheet.

How will I be keeping to a routine?

Time management is a must and from my year of real-world work I had to have a structured work day. At BDUK I actually started work at 7am so it was a massive change from what I was used to, I would wake up at 5:40am to get into work on time. However I am concerned that I will fall back into my irregular sleep pattern that I definitely developed for my first and second year of university. No more 10am wake ups for me, I have got to keep to a proper morning routine and set a time when I will start working every day.

How am I feeling?

Because I have been away from university for a year I am slightly concerned that when I get back to I am going to feel old – I mean I know I’m only 21 but this years freshers were born in 2002?! I can’t quite get my head around that. Also a readjustment for me will be going back into an academic setting, I haven’t learnt in a structured way for over a year so I’m a little nervous about getting back into the swing of things. I am going to have to put a lot of time and effort into all my work and I know it will be different and strange in many ways but I am up for the challenge.

I had better get packing now, I’ll update you on how I’m getting on in the near future!

Maisie

2SistersInSTEM

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