{"id":24454,"date":"2021-03-07T03:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-03-07T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/simcenter\/?p=24454"},"modified":"2026-03-26T06:19:40","modified_gmt":"2026-03-26T10:19:40","slug":"international-womens-day-amy-markham-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/simcenter\/international-womens-day-amy-markham-2\/","title":{"rendered":"International Women\u2019s Day &#8211; Amy Markham"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote has-text-align-center is-style-default is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p><strong><span style=\"color:#0db299\" class=\"has-inline-color\">&#8220;Representation of women in engineering is key to attracting more young girls to aspire to get involved in&nbsp;engineering.&#8221;<\/span><\/strong><\/p><cite><span style=\"color:#0db299\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Amy Markham<\/span><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"has-text-align-left wp-block-heading\"><span style=\"color:#0db299\" class=\"has-inline-color\"><em>What did you want to be when you were&nbsp;younger?&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/em><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>I really wanted to be one of the ground crewmembers that wave the orange batons when an aircraft is landing. Although my ambitions have changed slightly, I\u2019d say I followed through with that dream at a tangent!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"has-text-align-left wp-block-heading\"><span style=\"color:#0db299\" class=\"has-inline-color\"><em>What was your first job?<\/em><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>My first job was working as a hostess at&nbsp;Mdina&nbsp;Bastions Ltd in Malta; I got this job when I was 15 and started working at the age of 16. The role involved distributing leaflets for an exhibition in a tourist area close to my&nbsp;hometown and walking them through the exhibition. Since then, I\u2019ve had a part-time job throughout school and University; it makes me feel self-sufficient.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"has-text-align-left wp-block-heading\"><span style=\"color:#0db299\" class=\"has-inline-color\"><em>Have you always wanted to work for an engineering company? Why?<\/em><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>I never had any sort of inclination to pursue Engineering or work in the Engineering Industry until I started applying for University. However, I have always been interested in how things work and problem solving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"has-text-align-left wp-block-heading\"><span style=\"color:#0db299\" class=\"has-inline-color\"><em>What attracted you to Siemens?<\/em><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Siemens is integrated in a lot of technology I use on a day-to-day basis. The familiarity of the company name and its legacy sparked an interest in me. Last year as part of my university course, I learnt to use one of Siemens\u2019 CFD products; Simcenter STAR-CCM+.  Being a part of an organization like Siemens is a great honor!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"has-text-align-left wp-block-heading\"><span style=\"color:#0db299\" class=\"has-inline-color\"><em>How has the role of women in engineering changed over the past 5 years? Have you seen things change in gender equality?&nbsp;Diversity?&nbsp;<\/em><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>I think engineering has&nbsp;taken a big step forward in the last 5 years. The number of women pursuing engineering continues to increase year by year, which is a very positive trend.&nbsp;Representation of women in engineering is key to attracting more young girls to aspire to get involved in&nbsp;engineering, which enforces the importance of bodies (NGOs, government, and big corporations) that promote the importance of women in STEM. I believe that although improvements have been made, the world is yet to see the vast capabilities that women have to offer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span style=\"color:#0db299\" class=\"has-inline-color\"><em>What is the favorite part of your job?&nbsp;<\/em><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>As an intern, I\u2019m creating visual content for campaigns&nbsp;using STAR-CCM+, a&nbsp;Simcenter&nbsp;software. This is particularly interesting to me as it combines creativity and technology, making the job very interesting and engaging. Eventually,&nbsp;I would like to get involved&nbsp;in promoting engineering, and STEM, to young girls at schools too!&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"has-text-align-left wp-block-heading\"><span style=\"color:#0db299\" class=\"has-inline-color\"><em>This has been quite a year. What is the toughest part of working from home?&nbsp;Do you think working at home has been the same for both men and women?<\/em><font color=\"#0db299\">&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/font><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>This is a tricky question&nbsp;\u2013&nbsp;I&nbsp;don\u2019t think either gender has had it particularly easy.&nbsp;Mental health was a big factor to everyone\u2019s wellbeing during the pandemic and working from home can massively affect one\u2019s mental health. Pre-pandemic <a href=\"https:\/\/natcen.ac.uk\/media\/1722408\/Parental_time_use_report.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">data<\/a> suggests that women spend triple the amount of time that men spend on household tasks. This, along with time spent schooling children put a massive burden on women during the pandemic, making it harder to deal with the expectations of working from home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"has-text-align-left wp-block-heading\"><span style=\"color:#0db299\" class=\"has-inline-color\"><em>Has the pandemic created other challenges for you personally?&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/em>&nbsp;<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>I&nbsp;couldn\u2019t&nbsp;get home for Christmas, which was a bit tough as I haven\u2019t seen my family since July. Apart from this, I really can&#8217;t complain \u2013 I have a very tight-knit group of friends who provide great company&nbsp;and a constant supply of tea; not much else I can ask for!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"has-text-align-left wp-block-heading\"><span style=\"color:#0db299\" class=\"has-inline-color\"><em>We will never work&nbsp;in&nbsp;the same way again. What&nbsp;\u201cpositives\u201d&nbsp;will&nbsp;you take with you when the pandemic is behind us?<\/em>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>I have learnt to be more mindful of others in this pandemic. Mental health was at the forefront throughout this past year  This made me aware that mental illnesses can sometimes go under the radar, even with close friends. It only takes a few seconds to send to check up on a friend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"has-text-align-left wp-block-heading\"><span style=\"color:#0db299\" class=\"has-inline-color\"><em>What advice do you have for young women considering engineering&nbsp;or a technical career?&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/em><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>If you believe you can do it, then go for it! Don\u2019t let societal norms and expectations influence you. I\u2019ve had a few people who doubted my career choices along the way. Don\u2019t let someone else\u2019s thoughts bring you down \u2013 you can do it!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"has-text-align-left wp-block-heading\"><span style=\"color:#0db299\" class=\"has-inline-color\"><em>And, in honor of&nbsp;International Women\u2019s Day,&nbsp;is there&nbsp;a woman you&nbsp;particularly&nbsp;admire&nbsp;or look up to? Could you&nbsp;explain why?<\/em><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/03\/Amys-mum-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"Amy Markham's mum\" class=\"wp-image-24798\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/03\/Amys-mum-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/03\/Amys-mum-600x337.jpg 600w, https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/03\/Amys-mum-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/03\/Amys-mum-900x506.jpg 900w, https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/03\/Amys-mum.jpg 1334w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption>Amy and her mum<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>My mother has always been and continues to be the person I admire and look up to. She is an exceptional, loving and caring person and this can also be seen in her work. She is a family doctor and has been working at the same practice for as long as I remember. She loves her job and only has her patient\u2019s best interests at heart!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Celebrate International Women&#8217;s Day by finding out more about our female Simcenter heroes <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/simcenter\/international-womens-day-2021\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>To celebrate International Women&#8217;s Day, meet some of our Simcenter Heroes. Read more about Amy Markham, our talented intern.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":46709,"featured_media":24958,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spanish_translation":"","french_translation":"","german_translation":"","italian_translation":"","polish_translation":"","japanese_translation":"","chinese_translation":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[242,699],"industry":[],"product":[],"coauthors":[7160],"class_list":["post-24454","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-computational-fluid-dynamics-cfd","tag-international-womens-day"],"featured_image_url":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/03\/womansday_Amy_Markham-2.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/simcenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24454","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/simcenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/simcenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/simcenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/46709"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/simcenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24454"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/simcenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24454\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24973,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/simcenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24454\/revisions\/24973"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/simcenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24958"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/simcenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24454"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/simcenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24454"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/simcenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24454"},{"taxonomy":"industry","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/simcenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/industry?post=24454"},{"taxonomy":"product","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/simcenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product?post=24454"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/simcenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=24454"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}