ARCH: STEM

ARCH: STEM is on at The Abbey School on Friday 13 November, from 4:30 to 6:30 pm. It's a workshop run by the school for young people interested in science, technology, engineering and maths, and the whole thing is built around bringing in industry specialists to talk about the range of career paths open to STEM students. There are interactive sessions on the night, and networking over refreshments afterwards.

The speakers are Abbey School alumnae who'll be sharing their own career journeys. Ella Greenwood is a materials and analytical scientist specialising in inorganic materials in the defence industry, with a Chemistry MChem from the University of Oxford; she left the school in 2020. Amy Latimer is a Science Manager at AWE (Atomic Weapons Establishment) in Radiological Instrumentation and Calibration, and spent nine years as a Biomedical Scientist in the NHS before that; she was part of the class of 2009. Joining them is David Fergusson, a chemical engineer working in the Upstream Energy Industry.

Between the three of them, you get a good spread of what STEM actually looks like in practice: defence, radiological instrumentation, and energy. The session is as much about the different directions you can take as it is about the specific roles, and the interactive part means you're not just sitting and listening. The networking at the end is a chance to ask questions and chat with them properly, rather than just hearing them speak from the front.

Entry is free, and it runs from 4:30 to 6:30 pm on Friday 13 November at The Abbey School, 17 Kendrick Road, Reading RG1 5DZ. One thing to keep in mind: on-site parking is extremely limited, so if you're driving in, you'll want to leave yourself plenty of time to find a spot nearby.