In high school Lucy Nitschinsk didn’t know what engineering was — and yet has now gone on to be recognised for her innovative bridge design.
The civil engineering graduate, from Griffith University, used her academic achievements and extracurricular interests to get a job with SMEC, an engineering consultancy company.
It wasn’t long before she was nominated as design engineer for a bridge project in Yanderra, about 100km south of Sydney.
The design was Lucy’s first bridge project and was so well planned and innovative that she was one of five people selected to present at a Consult Australia competition for young engineers and leaders in Sydney.
Her bridge design was unique in that it didn’t require building a new bridge or knocking down the old one. Work was carried out on the existing bridge alignment in sections to ensure minimal disruption to traffic and the community, as well as cost savings for the client.
Now the 23-year-old will share her knowledge with potential engineering students at Griffith’s Open Dayon July 24.
Lucy says the most important thing she wants to get across when she speaks at Gold Coast and Nathan campuses is what engineering really is for prospective students.
“I’d really like to let future students know what engineering is really about,” she says.
“When I first graduated from high school I didn’t know what engineering was. I did a Bachelor of Maths because I loved maths but six months into that realised I wanted to use maths practically.
“I didn’t think engineering was well spoken about, particularly for women, in high school. There are so many options and pathways students need to know about.”
Lucy was part of Griffith’s Honours College and was awarded the Prime Minister’s Australia Asia Endeavour Scholarship which allowed her to do her final year thesis in China.
“During my time in China I was doing the structural, technical stuff that led to me being in the structural field,” she says.
“Having that on my resume really helped me get the job.”
Lucy also did an internship in South Korea during her time in China.
She will speak and be available for questions on Open Day.
Academics and past students will be speaking all day from every area of the university.
Visit Griffith.edu.au/open-day to plan your activities for the campus you want to visit or to find out more about what’s happening.