The Diversity Impact Programme supported 26 students from underrepresented backgrounds in building entrepreneurial skills and confidence. Participants got the opportunity to meet with mentors from various engineering fields and showcase their pitching skills in Bath Beyond Boundaries: The Engineering Challenge. This allowed students to engage their creativity, plan and present in teams a business idea to win a prize of £1,000 for first place!
Hearing success stories and receiving mentoring has demystified the journey for me.
Renna’s story
Renna entered the programme with a ‘conventional career path in mind – graduate, join a graduate scheme, work my way up’. By taking part in this course, she was able to develop her entrepreneurial skills with workshops like ‘Product in a Box’, creating and packaging her own product idea in a unique way. She was also able to develop here leadership skills, by exposure to the ‘subtle manifestations of discrimination’.
With her mentor’s advice, she was able to secure a summer placement in a small company focusing on refurbishing buildings, a field she thought was a distant dream. In Renna’s words, ‘this course has shattered the confines of my perceived career path'. Exploring opportunities in your field not only builds a portfolio of skills and experience but can also shape the direction of your Career. Exposure to professionals and hands-on experience in different career disciplines can send you on a journey that you might have thought was not possible, as it did for Renna.
I am grateful for the transformative experience that has set me on a trajectory I once deemed unattainable.
Employable Skills
Doing this programme has given Renna and other students an opportunity to develop a variety of practical skills such as:
- Engineering Design
- Research and Development
- Business Planning
- Entrepreneurship
However, on top of these, they were also able to develop and explore a range of transferable skills. These skills don’t just apply to Entrepreneurial Careers, but also careers in Engineering and beyond:
- Communication – Improved public speaking skills through presentations.
- Inclusivity and Leadership – The programme was created to give students from underrepresented backgrounds the opportunity to succeed and lead various projects with inclusivity in mind
- Networking – Built a network of Peers and industry professionals from various Careers
- Confidence – Encouraged creativity and forming ideas independently and in a team.
How do I put this on a CV
It is important to understand the job and the company you are applying for. Tailoring your CV is important especially when the experience might not be relevant directly. By highlighting the transferable skills that are relevant to a specific employer, you are more likely to stand out.
Here is a how I would write part of a CV written about the programme that is tailored towards a role in focusing on innovation and connecting and selling proposals with clients from various professional backgrounds.
University of Bath Diversity Impact Programme Participant
2023 - 2024
- Presented an entrepreneurial pitch about a carbon-negative domestic water filter in front of 30 engineers and won for my concise demonstration of a business plan
- Delegated tasks to envisage and develop a product that can be marketed, displaying my ingenuity and allowing me to build experience in diverse leadership
- Connected with mentors in fast paced networking event with 15 minute time frames, allowing me to build professional connections within an intense environment
Respond
