James Cook University’s first female Head of Engineering Professor Bouchra Senadji never dreamt of becoming an Engineer during her childhood in Morocco. In fact, she wasn’t even sure what engineers did.
The perceptions of women in Engineering are something Professor Senadji is passionate about changing and she hopes this year’s International Women’s Day (March 8) theme, Inspire Inclusion, helps her do just this.
Engineering pathways are not fully understood
Professor Senadji started her tenure with JCU in September 2023 and says that, although things are changing, engineering students still often have misconceptions about where their careers may take them.
“I wish I could say I was passionate about engineering when I was young but often, just like me when I was young, we find our students do not fully understand what engineers do,” Professor Senadji says.
“There is a misconception about engineering because of media representations showing hard hats and heavy tools which is not the reality of our work,” she says.
“As women in engineering, we can just be ourselves. We don’t want to be confined to a particular type – and we don’t have to. We can be whoever we want to be while being an Engineer. For me, it’s the most exciting, creative and beautiful profession ever. Imagine where you would be if engineers weren’t there? Would we have buildings, power, phone, medical devices? We wouldn’t.”
Professor Senadji says engineers are also here to serve the community and adds “to me, all engineering is humanitarian as it serves the needs of our society through identifying gaps to make everyone’s lives better”.
She says she feels fortunate that her parents invested in her education and made ‘strong suggestions’ about pursuing a career in engineering.
“They told me it would be great if I could be an engineer,” she says.
For Professor Senadji, the rest was history.
International experience informs her Australian career
Completing her studies in Electrical Engineering at a French Grandes écoles was no small feat.
“I can recall in my first job I was building software, and I would think ‘when do I get to be an engineer’ because I didn’t realise I was being an engineer,” Professor Senadji says.
“I soon found my feet and moved to Australia for four months to do a post-doctoral study in Telecommunications with the Queensland University of Technology. Four months became two years working as a lecturer and then I met my partner and had two children and many years later, here I am today in Townsville.”
Professor Senadji says she worked hard to climb through the ranks at QUT taking on various leadership roles before deciding to make the move north.
“I saw the role here at JCU and thought, I can do something great at JCU,” she says.
“I’m excited by the strategic possibilities of having a female Head of Engineering because as a university, we want to appeal to women who might be thinking of studying engineering with us. I don’t believe that as female leaders and role models we have to be out there preaching every day, but if we can just be and are seen, then obstacles and negative assumptions are removed because people can see that someone else has done it, which means they can too.”
More support is needed to create sustainable industry change
In a male-dominated industry, Professor Senadji says she appreciates the many men who supported her throughout her career because change would not have been possible without male champions who supported cultural change.
“I hope to be a role model for all students and am dedicated to being here for everyone as the Head of Engineering,” Professor Senadji says.
“In some ways as leaders and the collective student cohort, we can work together to equip and support women to thrive in a male-dominated industry. I look forward to the day when we don’t need to provide specific support or mentoring for women to be able to succeed in a male-dominated profession, because the culture in the workplace would be such that women can thrive by just being who they are.”
Encouraging more women in engineering
In 2024, JCU saw a 49 per cent increase in Semester One commencing enrolments for Engineering.
Professor Senadji says the shift makes is an exciting time to work at JCU.
“The team has made great progress in fostering and empowering women in Engineering through the Active Women in Engineering (AWESOME) society which is led by two female academics in Townsville and Cairns,” she says.
“I’m looking forward to building on this momentum to grow this society so that we can really ensure women in engineering can shine and that the future Engineers of our community, both women and men, can go on to create real change.”
