STRUCTURAL ENGINEER
Katie Symons
Hi. My name is Katie Symons and my job is to create modern buildings and structures. I see whole projects through from start to finish, from the early design stages to the final look of the building! As a structural engineer, you get to work alongside loads of different and talented people like designers and architects.
The company I work for is currently involved in the re-development of Anfield Football Stadium, designing the biggest theme park in the world in Dubai and designing a skyscraper in St Petersburg.
Discover more about design in construction , or how to get into Engineering.
Did you know?- Salaries can range from £20,000- £70,000.
- As a structural Engineer, you could work on projects all over the world.
- Friends and family can see the buildings and structures you've created from miles around.
- You can be involved in designing anything from houses, theatres and hospitals to sports stadiums, oil rigs and even satellites.
- To become a Structural Engineer, you need an Engineering degree and of course Maths and Science GCSE's and A-levels.
- Pay rises in the industry vary on how hard you work, but in the first few years of your career, you could see your salary rise by over 50%.
- Structural Engineers do not only work on new buildings, they examine existing builds to see if they are structurally sound. In fact a team of Structural Engineers recently saved The Leaning Tower of Pisa from collapse.
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT:My name's Katie Symons. I'm a structural engineer and I design buildings for a living.
I work with architects to help them make their building design stand up. I design the structure.
I always enjoyed Maths and Science, and I really wanted to apply what I learnt to making things in the real world that have made a difference on people's lives, and that's why I decided to study engineering at university.
I use Maths and Physics every day in my job when I'm designing building structures.
For instance, this column, I had to calculate the wind load on the face of the building and work out the stresses and strains that would be induced into this column due to that load, and make sure it was strong enough to not fall down.
If someone was thinking about a career in structural engineering I'd tell them to go for it. It's a really good way of using Maths and Science in designer buildings, and you'll be in demand, because we've got a real shortage of structural engineers in the country at this moment, so we need you.
Interested in becoming a Structural Engineer? Find out more about it here, check out our Useful Links section or talk to a careers advisor at school.