She wears a hard hat

Women in construction and engineering

A shortage of skilled workers has led Boston construction and engineering employers to look to a nontraditional source for new talent: women. Local colleges and universities, like Boston's Wentworth Institute of Technology (WIT), have long recognized the ability of women to succeed in these fields, but now their graduates are getting the chance to prove it.

Christina Saviano is an example. A civil engineering senior at Wentworth, Saviano has already secured a job after graduation with William A. Berry and Sons, the firm where she did her co-op.

"I enjoy working in civil engineering because things can always be built bigger and better than what they are now, and that goes hand in hand with the goals I have for myself, to always strive for bigger and better things," she says.

And if Saviano feels the pressure of being a woman in a traditionally male dominated field, she doesn't show it. "I felt totally comfortable at Berry. They have the same expectations for everyone."

Barbara Mulkerrin of Braintree agrees. Although the percentage of women in construction remains low at 7 percent, Mulkerrin, a WIT junior and construction management major, is not daunted. She has seen enough of the industry to know it's a good fit for her. As a co-op student at Campanelli Construction, she keeps logs, tracks manpower, and visits the construction sites, which she enjoys the most.

"No one is shocked by having women in these roles anymore," says Mulkerrin. "It's not a big deal. That's a good thing."

A good thing, indeed, for women interested in construction and engineering jobs, since, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, jobs in construction-related fields are predicated to grow at an "above average" rate until 2016.

Betty Shanahan, executive director and CEO of the Society of Women Engineers, says much of this growth comes from a significant percentage of the workforce reaching retirement age without having an equivalent number of young engineers entering the industry. There are opportunities for both men and women in engineering fields, Shanahan says. "However, because the engineering workforce is so homogenous (largely white and male), the employers don't get the value of diversity. Women and other members of under-represented groups are highly sought after by employers."

At Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), women make up 29 percent of the civil engineering program population, which, according to Michelle Nicholson, WPI's director of women's programs, is slightly higher than the percentage for other majors. "Women are becoming more interested in engineering and the numbers are slowly rising," she says.

In fact, Nicholson points out that women have much to add to the profession. "As civil engineering is becoming more entwined with environmental engineering, we are seeing more women attracted to the field, as they can now perceive civil engineering as a helping field. This is one the largest indicators of high percentages of women in an engineering or science related field, if it is considered to be helping,"

Wentworth student Saviano certainly perceives things that way. Inspired by the TV show Extreme Home Makeover, her goal is to "make the world a better place." In fact, Saviano chose Berry as an ideal employer because of the Berry Fund, an employee-founded charitable organization.

As opportunities abound, Mulkerrin, who someday wants to own her own residential construction company, says that it's an exciting field, but it takes determination to succeed. "You have to work hard, there's no coasting, and you have to thrive under deadlines and pressure,"

All are qualities any engineering and construction employer would be happy to have in its workers, regardless of their gender.