Where are they now? From a Women in STEM scholar to a Sustainability Senior Professional

We recently caught up with Karoline, a previous Women in STEM scholar to find out where her scholarship and Cranfield master’s has taken her.

How has Cranfield impacted your career?

Studying at Cranfield University was an important step in my career where I was able to specialise in sustainability whilst also immersing myself in a multicultural environment. During my time at Cranfield I had the opportunity to work on many interesting projects focused on assessing carbon emissions in both agricultural and food industry contexts. The latter being an industry-sponsored project which formed the basis of my thesis, ultimately sparking my interest in the food sector which I now work in. Finally, not to forget all the support I had from the Careers and Employability Service, which included support in preparing my CV, interview feedback, and mentoring, which was essential for my journey beyond university. I can say that my experience at Cranfield has made all the difference in helping me steer my career in the direction I had dreamed of.

What course did you study and how does it relate to your current job?

I studied a Master’s in Environmental Management for Business which is very much related to what I currently do in my job as a Sustainability Senior Professional at Aldi South Holding. My current work is focused on managing the company’s global packaging data across ten countries to support our packaging specialists in implementing sustainable packaging solutions for our own-brand products. I am excited to soon be transitioning to a new topic within the company, focused on product carbon emissions, which resonates fully to what I studied and worked on at Cranfield. I feel very grateful to have had the opportunity to build on my knowledge in this field at Cranfield where I learned from leading professors and had the chance to assess the carbon emissions for several British farms and a food manufacturer. I am looking forward to bringing all this acquired expertise to my new role!

Do you have a favourite memory from studying at Cranfield?

My favourite memory from Cranfield will always be the moments I spent at the Cranfield Student Association (CSA) with dear friends I made whilst studying at Cranfield, especially the other girls from the Women in STEM scholarship who will forever be in my heart!

Why did you choose Cranfield?

What sparked my interest in Cranfield from the start was how the course is structured, comprising of three sections: about five months focused on the course modules, two months for a group project, and four months for the thesis. I found this very diverse as the course was not only focused on theory but applying that to real life situations in the group project and thesis. I was also very interested in Cranfield’s links to industry, which materialised through my industry-sponsored thesis project, where I worked alongside a food manufacturer to assess their product carbon emissions where the results formed the basis for their company-wide sustainability strategy. I can’t hide the fact that it was also very exciting to visit their factories and understand a bit more about their production process!

What does it mean to you to have been a Women in STEM scholar?

It literally means the world to me! I would never have been able to make this dream a reality if it wasn’t for the British Council Women in STEM scholarship and for that I will be forever grateful for this once in a lifetime opportunity. It’s not easy studying abroad when you are coming from a developing country and don’t have the financial means to make it possible yourself. I admire this scholarship for focusing on supporting women from developing nations to advance in our careers in STEM. I would like to thank all of you who made this scholarship a reality!

If you are an aspiring woman in STEM from wider Europe in need of financial support and interested in taking the next step in your postgraduate journey, find out more about the British Council Women in STEM scholarships.