Viha Parekh
Ask me about
- How I followed my dreams instead of the expected path
- My first job of designing commercial airplanes
- Developing futuristic airplane prototypes and testing them
About me
- International Experience
For as long as I can remember, I have loved aviation, space, technology and design. Studying mechanical and aerospace engineering at university brought together all these passions. For me, the challenge of engineering lies in understanding the fundamental technical concepts and being able to connect the dots to have a practical and meaningful impact on the world. I am also passionate about giving back and investing in the next generation – mentoring and conversations about STEM are important to me.
No career path is a straight-line; the twists and turns on mine have led me to study, work and live overseas as well as work on cutting-edge technologies across different military and passenger aircraft. Currently at Boeing, I am a structural analysis engineer where I work within a team of engineers to solve aircraft design problems.
About my role
- Analytical
- Curious
- Intuitive
- Passionate
- Practical
Aerospace structural engineers apply 3D models and fundamental mathematics to ensure aircraft are safe and efficient. Structural engineers work with stakeholders across an aircraft’s lifecycle, from the end-user to suppliers, to turn customer requirements into design concepts and then support production and in-service maintenance.
This means that the types of problems aerospace structural engineers can work on are vast and varying; for example, early-stage technologies involve research and development of new, futuristic concepts alongside hands-on build and test of prototypes. Later in the aircraft design cycle, both in-service and during production, structural engineers rapidly address defects to keep production lines stable and aircraft usable.
Structural engineers work closely with other engineering disciplines such as aerodynamics, systems, avionics, manufacturing, and materials. Together these teams develop aircraft technologies that help connect and protect the world.
Education
- High School Certificate
- Bachelor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
- Masters of Systems Engineering (ongoing)
Subjects
- Aerospace Systems
- Chemistry
- Mathematical Methods (Maths B)
- Physics
- Specialist Mathematics (Maths C)
Awards
- Australian Student Prize: Top 500 in Australia in Year 12
- Featured in Aviation Week magazine in American Institute of Aeronautics Astronautics “20 Twenties”
- Sponsorship to global space industry conferences
Hobbies
- Cooking
- Dancing
- Gardening
- Hiking
- Seeing family and friends
15 year old me!!
My career journey
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Got in to medical school after Grade 12 because it was the expected career path
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Followed my dreams instead, and graduated with a degree in mechanical and aerospace engineering
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Moved cities for first job at Boeing designing commercial airplanes
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Moved overseas for a year to work for Boeing in Seattle
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Landed back in Melbourne and started working in the defence industry
My typical day
My employer
