INWED 25 Q&A: Pure DC Chief Executive Dame Dawn Childs

When did you first decide you wanted a STEM career?

Like many women in STEM that I talk to, I stumbled into a STEM career rather than actively pursuing it or even understanding what a career in engineering was. Quite simply, I wanted to go to university (for no other reason than all my school friends were) and knew that the student grant would not be sufficient. My parents were not able to financially support me, so I looked at courses that attracted sponsorship and engineering was the subject with the most potential sponsors at the time. I had previously thought that I was going to be a lawyer and even did my work placement with a legal firm. Sadly, I think this chance route into STEM careers may still be one of the well-trodden paths in - we need to change that by proactively inspiring and equipping more young people to explore and pursue careers in STEM from the outset.