What inspired you to study engineering?

From a young age I spent huge amounts of time in arcades and with home computers and consoles and every toy I had as a child had elements of building and creating so I guess I can blame my upbringing!

There was also a certain element of wanting to be the first in my family to go to university and do a degree, but I also realised that it would give me a solid base of learning which would really open up the engineering industry to me.

I studied a three-year BEng Hons in Control and Computer Engineering, with an option from electronic engineering at the University of Westminster, in central London. I also studied Japanese as part of my degree. It is not an easy language as a complete beginner, but once you've learnt the two similar 55-character alphabets it is a very logical, rule-based language. I don't get to use it very much, apart from watching anime or playing imported videogames, but I want to travel to Japan and maybe even work there one day.

The degree also included an eight-week STEP (Shell Technology Enterprise Programme) work placement at a precision measurement devices engineering firm. It gave me a valuable insight into real-world problems faced by businesses and provided useful 'relevant experience' for job applications.

Have you had any previous jobs?

Apart from some part-time work at a video-game store while I was at university, the job I'm in now is my first proper career step.

Any other background information?

I'm a big fan of retro electronics kit, particularly old games systems. I even have my own old arcade machine at home!

What do you do?

Currently, I'm a software engineer at AMS Ltd., a company that designs and manufactures radar systems. I've worked on a couple of projects so far, starting with coding small software components of the signal processing unit that will be implemented on the new UK/European frigates. The components had already been designed, and I was working as part of a very large team so it was a good, gentle introduction with a lot of support.

Currently, I'm on a project with a smaller team where I am designing and implementing a complete signal processor on my own, and using a new software tool as well, which is much more challenging and intensive!

How has your degree helped you with your work?

My degree has helped immensely, giving me a broader knowledge of many engineering areas including signal processing and software, which I use on a daily basis. My work is mainly signal processing for radars and due to the sheer volume of data produced in real-time, it requires implementing in extremely efficient software on top-end systems, so I get to utilise the knowledge gained through subjects taught at university (signal processing, software, control systems, etc.) on a daily basis. Also, I find that a lot of the soft skills honed at university, such as initiative, research and team-working, are also tested constantly in the workplace.

Did your first employer have a structured training scheme?

Yes, AMS has a structured training scheme. It is IEE-accredited and consists of three modules, each lasting several days, over the course of two years, which are held outside of work as well as regular expert-brief sessions held in-house. These expert briefs are typically an hour or so long, but allow you to experience various different areas of the business that you would not normally see in your daily routine.

Did you look for a company with this scheme?

My first job application was to BAE Systems (of which AMS is a joint-venture) and that was primarily because I had heard about the quality of their graduate training programme via other graduates who had gone on to work for them. They were lucky in that many companies did not offer any kind of structured graduate training, whereas BAE Systems have a two-year IEE-accredited graduate training scheme and continue to support the development of their engineers throughout their career.

What Professional Development support did/do the company give you?

AMS provides a series of three development modules over a two-year graduate programme, as well as regular briefing sessions and the provision of a company mentor. They are also very supportive of graduates attending outside Professional Development events, such as those created by the IEE. Most training is arranged for you (apart from those outside events), but it helps to make noise about the training you need to ensure that it happens on time!

Did the company provide a mentor?

The company provides a mentor, although my mentor was within the same area of the business as me, so I have also approached other areas to see whether other people would be willing to provide additional mentoring.

I met with my mentor every month for the first two years of my professional development and now we meet every two months.

Has your mentor helped you?

Yes, and I hope that my mentors will continue to assist me in the future. Not only are they good sounding boards for your career plans, they can also put you in touch with their networks of contacts, and may be able to find you opportunities that you didn't even know existed. Also, it is possible that your mentor has already been through the process to gain their CEng status so their advice can be extremely pertinent.

Do you think this will help you work towards CEng?

Yes, especially if the mentor has undergone the IEE Mentoring training. They can really help you to document your professional development and to point you towards areas where you need more training and experience to gain competence.

Obtaining Chartered Engineer status is very important to me, as I believe it is the next step in my own development. The information that the IEE can give you is crucial in attaining that status and having the ability to call on one of their membership advisors at any time is fantastic.

What aspects do you particularly enjoy about your work?

I can honestly say that I enjoy my work so I guess I am lucky in that respect. I always wanted to be an engineer, even before I knew what one was! I enjoy the problem-solving aspects, the pushing-back of boundaries and testing the unknown. The work I do is also well structured, relying on good basic engineering skills, no matter what field you are working in.

Do you think engineering has an image problem?

I think engineers worry that their industry does not get the recognition it deserves, or that the term 'engineer' has lost much of the kudos that it once had as many more people have adopted it as a job description. I'm not sure I believe that though - if all these people are so keen to have the word -engineer- by their name, doesn't that suggest that engineering has a good image?

What are your future aspirations?

Although I've been working in software engineering for two years, I trained as an electronic engineer, so I'm keen to broaden my horizons and experience other aspects of what AMS does. I'm trying not to specialise in one particular area too much, so that I can remain as a generalist and try my hand at disciplines such as systems engineering or even project/lifecycle management. I'm currently looking towards a flexible work-shadowing stint in our commercial department and am also considering whether taking a part-time MSc would be beneficial.

What is a typical day for you? Travel, hours etc.

I live a few minutes walk from where I work in Chelmsford, so I'm very fortunate with travel time. I tend to do around 8 hours a day, with either a little overtime or leaving early on a Friday. The work I do is all based in the office, and I spend all day in front of my PC, programming code. I could probably work from my PC at home if it wasn't for the fact that it is secure defence work!

Is it mainly desk work or hands-on work that you do?

It is all deskwork, although it is hands-on software engineering! Manipulating code and functions, testing systems, it's all manual work. I'm currently producing flowcharts and software components in GEDAE (a kind of visual representation of C code) for the signal processor I am working on. It will eventually carry out a set of functions defined in an algorithms document, so I?m currently working closely with the author of this document. I also spend a lot of time in discussions with my colleagues who are producing the functionality upstream and downstream of the signal processor, so it is a real team effort.

Has the IEE helped you at all through your studies or career?

The literature that the IEE publishes has been useful in building my knowledge and although I haven't needed to use it yet, I know the IEE also has a vast library of technical papers. The lectures that the IEE organises have been very insightful and the chocolate brownies that are provided at Savoy Place are worth the subscription on their own!

Have you used any IEE services?

The regular IEE magazines are extremely useful, as well as being an interesting read. I've also taken advantage of the courses run by the IEE and have attended some fascinating local IEE branch lectures.

Have you taken part in any YM events/committee work?

When I started at AMS, I joined the local IEE Younger Members committee and after a couple of years I've now taken over as Chair. The YM do valuable work for the IEE, representing the Institution at schools' events (careers evenings and hands-on engineering days) as well as organising lectures throughout the year.

Company profile:

AMS is an equal shares joint venture between BAE Systems of the UK and Finmeccanica of Italy. The company is a major force in European defence and electronics with a turnover of over 1.2 billion and an established international customer base in over 100 countries.

The operating divisions in Italy and the UK have wide ranging capabilities in ground and naval radar, air traffic management, command and control, simulation and synthetic environments, engineering, software design and manufacturing, all backed by comprehensive customer support facilities.

AMS commands a significant market share in many key electronics systems markets. In particular it is one of the three leading ground and naval radar suppliers in the world; a leading world supplier of air traffic management systems; an acknowledged expert in land and naval command and control systems; and a worldwide provider of customer support and training services.