Karoliina finished upper secondary in 2022 without an exact plan on ”what she wanted to be when she grew up”. Before upper secondary she had considered becoming a doctor, but after graduation the interest was no longer there. Karoliina was a student in upper secondary during the corona pandemic, and she had noticed how something new was getting a major foothold in our societies, keeping things running even while everything else seemed to have frozen.
”Automation technologies and robotics practically took on a bigger role when human interaction wasn’t an option”, Karoliina summarizes.
Curiosity led to engineering studies
Karoliina wanted to study in English because she was interested in an international career. Imagine her delight when her newfound curiosity in automation and robotics was met with a matching programme, taught in English.
”I didn’t know anything about the field in practice. But I wanted to challenge myself, and rely on my strong English skills. English is my strength, but you only need moderate English skills to get through the studies.”
The study group in the Automation and Robotics programme is very international, which Karoliina appreciates. Students come from all types of background – some have a lot of experience from the industry already, and some have none, like Karoliina did.
Goal-oriented mindset in studies brought Karoliina an internship and a thesis assignment
Karoliina had almost already secured an internship from another company when she received an offer from Actiw. Being an international company was a huge plus in Karoliina’s eyes and soon she was being interviewed – and then starting her internship working with automatic loading devices.
One of the first things Karoliina did in the company was to inquire about potential thesis topics, immediately receiving multiple suggestions. The final topic was determined by the work schedule and Actiw’s current needs. She chose to do her thesis on the development of risk management to achieve remote control and increased level of automation of Actiw LoadMatic loading system. Her work resulted in safer operability and created a base for developing a remote-control solution.
The internship helped Karoliina prove her worth and secure a permanent position
Working permanently at Actiw has helped Karoliina to widen and deepen her expertise in the field. Nowadays as a PLC (programmable logic controller) engineer Karoliina co-operates with engineers from multiple different fields. Her tasks are similar to those in her internship – she’d been a part of customer projects already back then.
”The customer projects have helped me learn what information I need from the other people involved to do my own part. Being active and self-initiative as well as communicating clearly is beneficial as an automation engineer as well.”
Karoliina is happy with her decision to study to become an engineer. The technical field is a male-dominated one, so Karoliina wants to encourage more women to choose to work in the field.
”You shouldn’t skip the technical field just because you’re afraid whether you’ll succeed as a woman. I’m a living example of how you can make it if you’re not afraid to seize the moment and trust your own talent!” Karoliina says.
