What's your job about?
I am working with Babcock where we mainly work for the Navy ships for their engineering and maintenance. I get to work on the Electrical production delivery since I am working currently in the delivery department. I am aspiring into becoming an Electrical Design Engineer and this would be the best background experience one could gain during my time as a Graduate Engineer. I get to work with the technical team while they implement electrical installations, investigate for faults in electrical systems and carry out maintenance for parts. I also get to work with an estimation of production projects where I help with requests for quotes or lookout for a new part for replacement in particular electrical systems.
What's your background?
I grew up in Kerala, India where I did my schooling and bachelor’s degree as well. I finished School and joined B-Tech in Electronics and Instrumentation Engineering at Mahatma Gandhi University India. The journey during Engineering studies was a very interesting one where I got most active and enjoyed my Uni work as well. I then chose to come to New Zealand for my master’s at Victoria University of Wellington, which was the most life-changing decision. It had difficult on a level because I was alone here in New Zealand, which was quite hard, and I was homesick for a very long time. Covid added to the hardship with visas expiring and very less job openings. It took me two years to find my Graduate position after my internship during my studies. But now I would say it is worth the wait and I am enjoying my time with a vast opportunity to investigate. I have learned through my journey that it is very important to embrace what comes in front optimistically, while I keep my past learnings in mind.
Could someone with a different background do your job?
Yes, someone with the ability to learn through the process can successfully do the job. I believe one would need to require strong communication skills to clearly communicate in person or on phone. Knowledge of electrical systems and the ability to understand electrical drawing would be a strong skills for the job. Being curious and ability to learn is also important during the start of a career as this.
What's the coolest thing about your job?
I love that I am learning a lot regarding ships and Navy standards when it comes to electrical systems. I enjoy going into the ships and learning more about how electrical drawings are practically implemented in ships. Even though it could be tiring to wait for the authorisations, it made sense how important it is to wait when safety implementations came in place for each job on a ship.
What are the limitations of your job?
The job’s limitation is only the phase being slow at times which comes with the Defence work line. Being a graduate, I am not given a lot of responsibilities. My work or interactions sometimes are limited by the need to communicate in person rather than using emails, which I am learning and getting practised on more.
3 pieces of advice for yourself when you were a student...