Ann, St. Augustine, Florida asked Zahra Khan, Columbus Technologies and Services AddedWednesday, October 19, 2016 at 12:43 AM Did you have to prove to people that you could be an Aerospace engineer because you are a girl? Hi! I'm a 12 grade senior in high school and living on Florida's space coast all my life has me in love with NASA. I love the whole idea about space or anything that flies. It's just unreal that people are building and designing machines that fly through the air! Anyways, I'm wanting to be an Aerospace Engineer, but all the people I talk to say that I'm not smart enough or that since I'm a girl I can't do it. I'm not that great in science but I love my science classes and my math classes. I know my heart is set to be in aerospace engineering, but I don't know where to begin. Did you have to prove to people that you could be an Aerospace engineer because you are a girl? How did you stay encouraged other than being passionate about it. Related to Aeronautical/Aerospace , Choosing a Degree, Opportunities/Challenges for Women, Preparation for College Reset Sort By Default Zahra Khan , Columbus Technologies and Services Answered Wednesday, October 19, 2016 at 12:43 AM Hi Ann, Awesome to hear you're interested in becoming an aerospace engineer. As for me, I was like you in that I knew I wanted to be an aerospace engineer so I focused my energy on making that happen. I grew up in a different country where people don't think girls are bad at math and science so I didn't have to face the adversity you're facing with regards to proving I could be an aerospace engineer. I did have to think about how to deal with having to move around the world to become an aerospace engineer as there weren't any opportunities where I grew up. What helped me was seeing other women working on important aerospace project's like JPL's Pathfinder mission which landed on Mars when I was a high school student. You have even more role models today. Recently, there was a space exploration panel at the White House Frontiers Conference and it was full of amazing women including Dava Newman, Anousheh Ansari and Erika Wagner (https://twitter.com/dittmarml/status/786643128400896000) Try to ignore the naysayers and focus on applying to colleges for aerospace engineering programs. Many girls have gone on to become amazing aerospace engineers including several of my professors during undergrad and grad school. You can become an awesome aerospace engineer too. Zahra Khan , Columbus Technologies and Services Answered Wednesday, October 19, 2016 at 12:43 AM Hi Ann, Awesome to hear you're interested in becoming an aerospace engineer. As for me, I was like you in that I knew I wanted to be an aerospace engineer so I focused my energy on making that happen. I grew up in a different country where people don't think girls are bad at math and science so I didn't have to face the adversity you're facing with regards to proving I could be an aerospace engineer. I did have to think about how to deal with having to move around the world to become an aerospace engineer as there weren't any opportunities where I grew up. What helped me was seeing other women working on important aerospace project's like JPL's Pathfinder mission which landed on Mars when I was a high school student. You have even more role models today. Recently, there was a space exploration panel at the White House Frontiers Conference and it was full of amazing women including Dava Newman, Anousheh Ansari and Erika Wagner (https://twitter.com/dittmarml/status/786643128400896000) Try to ignore the naysayers and focus on applying to colleges for aerospace engineering programs. Many girls have gone on to become amazing aerospace engineers including several of my professors during undergrad and grad school. You can become an awesome aerospace engineer too.