When Luci-Anne was little, she dreamed of becoming an airline pilot after watching a TV show about life at an airport. She read about Bessie Coleman, the first Black woman in the world to earn a pilot’s licence, and felt inspired knowing she could be part of that same legacy of breaking new ground.
Growing up with a nurse and a train engineer as parents, Luci-Anne always felt encouraged in STEM subjects - until she moved schools for her final years and was suddenly told that maths and physics “weren’t for girls.” This was a real knock to her confidence. But with support from her family and friends, she decided to use that experience to push herself even harder, rather than let it hold her back.
“If you face setbacks, they don’t define you - what you do next does.”
Luci-Anne went on to study Electronic and Electrical Engineering at university. During her course, she worked on an exciting international project with a university in the USA, helping design a giant 3D printer that could one day print concrete for buildings - something that could make construction more sustainable in the future. Today, she works as a Junior Consultant, helping plan how cities build things like transport systems.
For a long time, Luci-Anne struggled with something called imposter syndrome - feeling like she didn’t deserve her place, even though she had worked incredibly hard to get there. She overcame it by reminding herself of everything she had achieved, rather than focusing on setbacks.