9 May 2022
Experienced civil engineer – and Woldingham alumna – Mary-Caroline van Paassen offered students in Year 9 upwards an insight into careers in this historically male-dominated profession on Friday 29 April.
Road design has featured heavily in Mary-Caroline’s career and she explained the challenges this brings and why roads are much more interesting than her audience might have thought. A career in engineering has given Australian Mary-Caroline the opportunity to work overseas, including in the UK on the South East London Strategic Cycle Network.
Mary-Anne spent most of her school career at sister Sacred Heart school Stuartholme, Brisbane and one very happy year boarding at Woldingham. She was delighted to ‘zoom’ into the Goddard Room – the dining room when she was at school – to talk to students. She said she realised that some of the younger students may not yet have many thoughts on future careers, but if they have an interest in STEM subjects, engineering is definitely something they should consider.