Ep57: Entering Tech from a Non-traditional Background with Aida Pirahmadi

Aida is a full stack developer who got bachelors from UC Irvine in Civil Engineering. Ever since graduating she has been on a journey finding a fulfilling career that she is passionate about. Aida started her non traditional path to tech from a coding bootcamp and she loves that the tech industry requires a passion for continuous learning and is shaping and defining the future! *This episode is sponsored by Steel Chic Shoes who offer women’s fashionable Steel Toe Shoes. Use promo code EngineeringGals to get FREE shipping and a FREE water bottle when you purchase a pair of shoes. Connect with us on social media: Aida: @aidapira Lara: @larahuapaya Amy: @amydeepkaur Engineering Gals: @engineeringgals MUSIC by: Not The King - Faded - Royalty Free Vlog Music @coreygagn --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/engineeringgals/support

Emily is a cybersecurity consulting analyst at Accenture to help businesses defend against cyber threats. She graduated from Bucknell University in May of 2021 with a degree in electrical engineering and a minor in Russian language. While in college, she created The STEM Diaries: a platform that fuses STEM with a trendy, adventurous and healthy lifestyle and creates learning experiences that empower girls to succeed in STEM. The STEM Diaries includes two hand-written and illustrated, published books about electrical engineering concepts, a blog, Instagram, merchandise and STEM-related resources. *This episode is sponsored by Steel Chic Shoes who offer women’s fashionable Steel Toe Shoes. Use promo code EngineeringGals to get Free shipping and a Free water bottle when you purchase a pair of shoes: Connect with us on social media: Emily: - Web: www.thestemdiaries.com  - IG: @thestemdiaries Lara: @larahuapaya Engineering Gals: @engineeringgals MUSIC by: Not The King - Faded - Royalty Free Vlog Music @coreygagn --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/engineeringgals/support

Lara Huapaya is a Research and Technology Engineer in the aerospace industry who became passionate about aircrafts through her love for traveling. Her focus is on developing new material capabilities to support sustainability efforts and prognostic health monitoring of components. Lara has been unapologetically chasing her dreams from a young age. At the age of 13 she convinced her parents to move to the U.S. for her to create her dream life, and she has been keeping herself busy doing just that. She is an adventurous soul who loves the outdoors and is always trying something new. She has found the way to embrace and fulfill a multidimensional life by strategically creating balance. She aims to fulfill all her passions and help people do the same. *This episode is sponsored by Steel Chic Shoes who offer women’s fashionable Steel Toe Shoes. Use promo code EngineeringGals to get Free shipping and a Free water bottle when you purchase a pair of shoes: Connect with us on social media: Lara: - IG: @larahuapaya - Email: [email protected] Amy Kaur: @amydeepkaur Engineering Gals: @engineeringgals MUSIC by: Not The King - Faded - Royalty Free Vlog Music @coreygagn --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/engineeringgals/support

Chloe is a civil engineer in the power industry in Los Angeles, CA. Her mission is to show that women can "be both" and to break stereotypes of women in STEM. Chloe is the founder of the #stompingout stereotypes movement, which showcases that women in STEM are multifaceted, whatever that looks like to them. Chloe's platform shows her life as an engineer, real estate investor, entrepreneur, dog mom, and everything else in between. Her goal is to show that all engineers are unique, and that is a good thing! *This episode is sponsored by Steel Chic Shoes who offer women’s fashionable Steel Toe Shoes. Use promo code EngineeringGals to get Free shipping and a Free water bottle when you purchase a pair of shoes: Connect with us on social media: Chloe:  - IG: @chloetheengineer - Email: [email protected] Amy Kaur: @amydeepkaur Lara Huapaya: @larahuapaya Engineering Gals: @engineeringgals MUSIC by: Not The King - Faded - Royalty Free Vlog Music @coreygagn --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/engineeringgals/support

Lorena is a community leader, Keynote Speaker, Forbes Fellow and passionately supports those changing the world. Lorena believes social responsibility is not a box you check but something directly incorporated into a company’s DNA - especially when it comes to science & tech. She’s a Latina Founder and the CEO of every POINT ONE, a Seattle based public benefit corporation helping AI companies end performative practices by creating and implementing actionable, socially responsible practices throughout the entire organization. *This episode is sponsored by Steel Chic Shoes who offer women’s fashionable Steel Toe Shoes. Use promo code EngineeringGals to get Free shipping and a Free water bottle when you purchase a pair of shoes: Connect with us on social media: Lorena:  - IG: @girlchangetheworld - Twitter: @STEMpreneurlife - LinkedIn: /girlchangetheworld Lara Huapaya: @larahuapaya Amy Kaur: @amydeepkaur Engineering Gals: @engineeringgals MUSIC by: Not The King - Faded - Royalty Free Vlog Music @coreygagn --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/engineeringgals/support

Nikki Zulueta is Filipino American who works in the field of civil engineering. She is a STEM advocate within her community and loves to share it off and online through advocacy and volunteering. *This episode is sponsored by Steel Chic Shoes who offer women’s fashionable Steel Toe Shoes. Use promo code EngineeringGals to get Free shipping and a Free water bottle when you purchase a pair of shoes: Connect with us on social media: Nikki: @adrianicolee Amy Kaur: @amydeepkaur Lara Huapaya: @larahuapaya Engineering Gals: @engineeringgals MUSIC by: Not The King - Faded - Royalty Free Vlog Music @coreygagn --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/engineeringgals/support

Ivonne Howard holds a Bachelor’s degree of Science in Manufacturing Engineering and a Black Belt in Lean Six Sigma Certification from the University of Texas Pan-American. She is the Founder and CEO of Steel Chic, a fashionable women’s safety shoe company that focuses on safety, fashion, and comfort. Her work experience ranges from Continuous Improvement Engineer, Project Management, Process Engineer, and Quality Engineering. *This episode is sponsored by Steel Chic Shoes who offer women’s fashionable Steel Toe Shoes. Use promo code EngineeringGals to get Free shipping and a Free water bottle when you purchase a pair of shoes: https://shopsteelchic.com/pages/engineering-gals Connect with us on social media: Ivonne: @laninialany, LinkedIn: Ivonne Martinez-Howard Steel Chic Shoes: @steelchicshoes; www.shopsteelchic.com Amy Kaur: @amydeepkaur Engineering Gals: @engineeringgals MUSIC by: Not The King - Faded - Royalty Free Vlog Music @coreygagn --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/engineeringgals/support

Emily is the Host and Co-Executive Producer of Emily's Wonder Lab on Netflix, as well as Xploration Outer Space on FOX. Along with that Emily is also the author of the Ada Lace Adventures and Reach for the Stars/Stay Curious and Keep Exploring children's books. *This episode is sponsored by Steel Chic Shoes who offer women’s fashionable Steel Toe Shoes. Use promo code EngineeringGals to get Free shipping and a Free water bottle when you purchase a pair of shoes: https://shopsteelchic.com/pages/engineering-gals Connect with us on social media: Emily: @TheSpaceGal on social, www.spacegalstore.com, www.thespacegal.com Amy Kaur: @amydeepkaur Lara Huapaya: @larahuapaya Engineering Gals: @engineeringgals MUSIC by: Not The King - Faded - Royalty Free Vlog Music @coreygagn --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/engineeringgals/support

Niamani is a 20-year-old education advocate, the Founder of S.T.R.E.A.M. Kids Expo™, and Co-Founder of S.T.R.E.A.M. Global Innovations alongside her mother, Nikia Richards whose goal is to connect the dots between education and career in low-income and underserved communities. Since the program's launch, she's worked with over 30,000 peers and reached over 100 million through electronic and printed publications. In the future, she hopes to create a center where kids will have access to S.T.R.E.A.M.-based learning daily. Until then, Niamani is both honored and humbled to have developing relationships with some of the world's leading companies like Amazon, Lockheed Martin, PPG, and many more. *This episode is sponsored by Steel Chic Shoes who offer women’s fashionable Steel Toe Shoes. Use promo code EngineeringGals to get Free shipping and a Free water bottle when you purchase a pair of shoes: https://shopsteelchic.com/pages/engineering-gals Connect with us on social media: Niamani Knight: @niamaniknight @streamglobalorg www.streamglobal.org Amy Kaur: @amydeepkaur Engineering Gals: @engineeringgals MUSIC by: Not The King - Faded - Royalty Free Vlog Music @coreygagn --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/engineeringgals/support

Amy Kaur is an entrepreneurial civil engineer and strong community leader with the goal of inspiring more women to become engineers. As a founder of Engineering Gals, she has cultivated a global community of engineers focused on positive and empowering ecosystems for women in STEM. As a first generation American and college graduate, Amy strives to amplify underrepresented voices in STEM by hosting the Gals Chat podcast, live seminars and providing valuable resources for students and professionals. *This episode is sponsored by Steel Chic Shoes who offer women’s fashionable Steel Toe Shoes. Use promo code EngineeringGals to get Free shipping and a Free water bottle when you purchase a pair of shoes: https://shopsteelchic.com/pages/engineering-gals Connect with us on social media: Amy Kaur: @amydeepkaur Engineering Gals: @engineeringgals Maritza Bravo: @Bravouniverse MUSIC by: Not The King - Faded - Royalty Free Vlog Music @coreygagn --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/engineeringgals/support