Karen Lieu
Civil Engineer – Roads & Highways, Aurecon
From growing up in a traditional Asian household in South West Sydney, to becoming a Civil Engineer in a male dominated industry, Karen has been bending the "norms of traditions" almost her whole life. Karen is an advocate for more women and more diversity in the STEM industry. She was the Treasurer for Power of Engineering Inc , which aimed to bring universities, the industry and schools together through running one day events for females, regional and Indigenous students. In addition to that, Karen was previously the Western Sydney University WiSE coordinator at GHD.
Karen graduated from UNSW in 2019 with a Bachelor of Engineering (Civil) (Hons) and Bachelor of Commerce (Finance). She has been in the transport industry for over 4 years, and is currently a Civil Engineer in the Roads and Highways team at Aurecon. While still early in her career, Karen has grabbed every opportunity put in front of her and jumped on all the gaps she sees to develop her skills to become a more proficient engineer. As a graduate, she developed a multitude of skills in the design, design management and project management space that has set herself apart from others.
Noticing that there is a general lack of understanding towards what engineering is and what a diverse and rewarding career it can bring, Karen is passionate about bridging that gap of awareness across all types of people.