Building a Path: A Woman’s Journey Through Engineering and Applied Mathematics

By Dr Luan Al-Haddad, ​Lecturer in Civil Engineering Lecturer, University of South Wales

My fascination with science and construction was evident at an early age.  As a child, I spent most of my time designing and building, using any tools I could borrow from my dads shed.  I had always had a passion for taking things apart to analyse how they worked and then putting them back together – not always in the right order! I enjoyed maths and science as a child, despite the fact that it never came particularly easy to me, but undertaking a degree in Civil Engineering and Mathematics made me realise I could visualise mathematics in this very applied field.  This I found furthered my passion and understanding where I could suddenly see maths in action.

It was when I started my PhD and began teaching that I really started to understand how mathematics and science fit into the real world.

My PhD was based on Artificial Neural Networks and their use in identifying and classifying based on morphological characteristics.  Despite the biological application, the basis of the networks were computerised mathematical algorithms and I was later employed in a forensic field to assess how these could be used in drugs analysis.

I spent ten years as a scientific research manager and for the last two of those years I returned part time to my passion of applied mathematics in the field of Water Engineering.  For the last ten years I have been lecturing applied mathematics topics in the field of Civil Engineering with most of my focus being in Hydraulics and Hydrology.  I have also spent five years as a placement tutor for students wishing to undertake an industrial placement year during their degree.  It is reassuring to see more women entering into this career and undertaking senior management roles in the field of engineering.

Although this field does not yet have a balance of male and female engineers, I have never felt disadvantaged or treated differently as a woman, particularly as it has been my privilege to meet and work with some incredible female trail blazers in the STEM subjects areas!