Strong growth in women enrolling for Engineering with MIT TechPark

Trisha Chand is following in her father's footsteps joining the engineering industry, but she’s also choosing her own pathway.

On first leaving high school, Trisha was reluctant to sign up for another four years of study at a university without knowing exactly whether the field was right for her.

That’s why the 23-year-old chose to do the New Zealand Diploma in Engineering at Manukau Institute of Technology.

She ended up absolutely loving it.

“One of the main reasons I didn’t go straight to a university was because I was unsure of myself and what I wanted to do,” explains Trisha. “I would have rather dipped my feet in first instead of going in straight to a bachelors. I wanted to see if I was going to do well in my field.”

By choosing the diploma, Trisha was able to try multiple different elements of the engineering trade including civil, mechanical and electrical, where she gained hands-on experience in design, problem solving and working in specialist fields like electronics, power, mechatronics, telecommunications, clinical and mechanical services.

“The teachers were great, they were really helpful, and I loved that practical side of it.”

Now, Trisha is two years into a Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) at the University of Auckland. She looks back at her time with MIT as invaluable for helping her gain an understanding of her chosen profession at a hands-on level.

Trisha has decided to specialise in civil engineering and recently received an internship over the summer working with Mac Consultants Ltd, a civil engineering firm based in Howick.

As of 2021, Professional Engineering at MIT will be taught at our new centre of excellence for engineering and trades education in South Auckland. MIT TechPark is a purpose-built facility with the latest technology and innovations to ensure quality training for all.

School of Professional Engineering has seen a huge increase in female applications and enrolments in 2021 from the same time last year, with these up 276 percent and enrolments up 233 percent.

However, there is still work to be done in seeing more Māori, Pasifika and women in the technology workforce.

“Only three percent of the workforce on the tools are women. So that has got to be addressed,” Deputy Chief Executive Academic Prof Martin Carroll said at the launch on the Construction and Infrastructure Centre of Vocational Excellence (CONCoVE) in September.

One of the five initial projects for CONCoVE focuses on diversity and is spearheaded by newly-appointed General Manager Bharti Kottaiya.

Having spent multiple decades in leadership roles across a variety of environmental, project and quality management functions, within Fulton Hogan, Harrison Grierson and Visionstream; Bharti is starting her new role with a huge amount of optimism.

“I’m very excited about the next steps, I’m in the process of recruiting the five project leads,” she explains.

“Exposure at a young age is so important for females interested in STEM subjects. Otherwise, young females may end up coming to tertiary study and it might be too late. I feel that high school is important for these ideas to begin and once they’re in a tertiary institute, they should be in a safe environment for women to study,” Bharti says.  

CONCoVE is responsible for bringing all stakeholders together to redesign learning and remove barriers to attracting and retaining the workforce New Zealand needs for delivering and maintaining housing, transport and key infrastructure to support economic growth.

The other main projects include:

• Disruption – preparing industries to manage disruptions to the nature of work brought about by new technologies and develop training solutions.
• Learning Framework – reform entry-level training to decrease the time it takes workers to become engaged in meaningful employment
• Retention – improve workforce productivity and retention by developing career support services including training, mentoring and networking.
• Sustainability – help the industry respond to increasing demand for environmentally sustainable practices.

The centre is also a key part of education helping to deliver on the shared goals of the Construction Sector Accord agreed between Government and industry to create a more productive, sustainable and resilient sector for both business and employers.

CONCoVE board co-chair, Graham Burke who is also the chair of NZ Construction Industry Council and a member of the Construction Sector Accord Steering Group says there were many high-quality applicants for the role.

“Bharti shone through. We are thrilled to have her onboard,” he says. “She’s a woman who has worked her way into a male-dominated industry. Not only is she very well-qualified, she’s an aspirational role model for others coming into the sector.”

The successful consortium led by Manukau Institute of Technology includes Unitec, Te Wānanga o Aotearoa, Ara Institute of Canterbury, BCITO, The Skills Organisation, The Construction Sector Accord, New Zealand Construction Industry Council, Vertical Horizonz and Connexis.

Currently, there are also thirty-two associate members with that number expected to grow.

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