The “Her Stories: Adventures in STEM” blog series is a collection of stories about 20 women in science and engineering fields, written by members of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) Pre-College Engagement and Support (PCES) Committee.
These inspiring women have experienced a variety of life experiences and career paths, and these stories and accompanying artwork help to capture the vast diversity of our featured scientists and engineers.
We hope this series will show you how exciting engineering and science can be and help you realize that anyone can choose to become a scientist or an engineer.
Story by Emily Tacopina
As a young girl, Kathryn “Katie” Kauffman was super curious and loved figuring out how things worked. She grew up in Illinois with her mom, who fostered her creativity and interests through books and science experiments. Katie fondly remembers making crystals in a jar, an experiment where you start with a solution and then the next day crystals are formed.
She went to Eisenhower Academy, a magnet school focused on hands-on experiences. Her childhood was very science-centered; Katie dissected owl pellets, made elephant toothpaste, and competed in the science fair every year from 4th to 8th grade.
Katie went to college at Bradley University where she studied mechanical engineering with a biomedical concentration. She discovered that what she thought she wanted to study wasn’t the best fit for her because it didn’t align with her interests and strengths. She wasn’t sure what she wanted to study and asked her dad for advice. He suggested she take some aptitude tests.
An aptitude test is an assessment used to identify an individual’s natural abilities, skills, and interests to determine possible career paths. Katie remembers her dad telling her to answer the questions about what she liked honestly, not what she thought she was supposed to like.
She took multiple aptitude tests, and they all suggested manufacturing engineering or manufacturing engineering technology. Katie looked up both of these majors and realized they were offered at her university — plus, many of the classes she already took would transfer to these majors.
She spoke with her dean and advisor to learn more about these two career paths and figure out which to pursue. Ultimately, they encouraged her to pursue the manufacturing engineering technology degree since it was more hands-on, which aligned with her interests.
While in college, she loved being part of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE). She met some of her closest friends through SWE and enjoyed being involved with an organization of like-minded women who were going through similar school projects and experiences.
Aside from close friendships, SWE gave Katie insight into what an engineering career can look like. SWE provided an opportunity to interact with engineering professionals and see adults working together outside of a university setting. From these interactions, she learned valuable communication skills as well as the challenges engineers face on a day-to-day basis.
Katie graduated with a degree in manufacturing engineering technology and began working as a supplier quality engineer, producing mining haul trucks. One part of this role she really liked was the opportunity to travel and meet with the product suppliers.
She found it interesting to learn how different components were made and how they worked. The quality role starts from the beginning and works its way up through to the finished product, which aligns with how she thinks. Katie loved that the small everyday wins added up to making a high-quality product.
She decided she wanted to try a new role and transferred to quality assurance. As a quality assurance engineer, she listens to the trends and determines where the company can improve from a quality perspective. This new role allows her to see what happens once the product hits the field and what the customer experiences, giving her a different point of view from her previous.
One of the challenges she navigated in both roles was being the youngest engineer, and the only woman engineer, in her group. Through her work experiences and time in SWE, she has developed relationships with professionals both inside and outside of her company. She has gained wonderful mentors who have helped Katie develop her skills. From these mentorships, she has even been able to coach new engineers at her company.
In the future, Katie hopes to become a quality assurance manager or director. In these roles, she would have more insight and oversight into the challenges the team faces. Many of the projects Katie has worked on overlap within and outside of the plant, and in a management position, Katie would have the opportunity to impact both sides in a more meaningful way.
Katie’s advice is to always be yourself. Everyone has their own unique talents and strengths, and it’s important to leverage those to find what makes you happy.
The “Her Stories: Adventures in STEM” series is a collection of stories about 20 women in science and engineering fields, written by members of the SWE Pre-College Engagement and Support (PCES) Committee. Dive into the rest of the series here!
Know a precollege kid interested in STEM? Join SWENext, the Society’s free program that allows students ages 5 through 18 to join the SWE engineering and technology community.
SWENexters enjoy numerous opportunities throughout the year to learn, network, and connect with peers, role models, and industry professionals. Plus, this diverse, welcoming, precollege STEM community provides a safe place where kids can feel seen, heard, and validated. SWENext is open to all genders.
