The ups and downs of a woman in engineering
Sarah Mollier, PRT engineer
On the occasion of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, PRT engineer Sarah Mollier testified about her career, in an interview with Métro.
Of French origin, Sarah Moillier studied at the École des Mines d’Alès before moving to Quebec in 2018 to pursue his studies at the École Polytechnique de Montréal. She currently works for CanmetENERGY and specializes in renewable energies.
“It may be a coincidence, she explains, but in France, I had sexist remarks from teachers, students and colleagues, but it never happened to me here.” Remarks “probably too raw to be said in the media”, which were made in a joking tone. Their impact, says Ms. Moillier, was real, however.
“It’s something that works for you a lot,” she says. These remarks made her think endlessly about what she could have done, what she could have said. The impact was mostly felt on his self-confidence and being comfortable working with people who made such comments.
Although she affirms that remarks of this kind can happen in all professions and in all countries, the fact of not having had any in Quebec is one of the reasons which make her feel good here and make her want to stay. .
Symbolic place
To be a woman at Polytechnique is to be on the scene of a mass feminicide. Ms. Mollier felt particularly affected by this tragedy. “It takes you to the guts and it moved me a lot. I was in the same halls as those girls,” she says.
She insists that viewing the film Polytechnique (2009), which recounts the tragedy, was particularly moving for her, because it was precisely shot in these corridors where she regularly passed.
During her studies, however, she always felt safe and safe. the idea that something similar could happen again was far from her. However, she explains, “no one could have known it was going to happen; we always think it happens to others and never to us”.
Encouraging girls of science
If she decided to pursue studies in science, it’s because she always had good teachers who made her want to continue. She stresses the importance of encouraging girls in school, whether in science or in other fields that interest them.
In her experience, girls generally represent 30% of the composition of working or study groups in their field. “We are clearly a minority, she expresses, but we are not alone!”
On this International Day of Women and Girls in Science, Sarah Mollier's message to young people is simple. “At 18, it's not easy to make these kinds of decisions, but if you have the ability and the taste to do science, you have to go for it. For the energy transition, we need female engineers. To counter the collapse of biodiversity or even to manage pandemics, we also need women scientists,” she concludes.
