Kirsty Arnold is a Field Service Engineer Apprentice at Worcester Bosch.
She joined Worcester Bosch, a leading boiler manufacturer, in 2022 and is now approaching the end of her apprenticeship. Her day-to-day responsibilities consist of attending to customers and fixing or servicing boilers in the safest manner possible.
Before joining the industry, Kirsty described her initial feelings as being “nervous as I didn’t know anything about it but, excited to be doing something unique and unexpected of a woman”.
Now having been part of this industry for 2 and a half years, she feels “indifferent” as she feels her “gender doesn’t play a role in it”. What she has noticed, however, is that when visiting customer homes, they seem shocked when a female engineer turns up and call it “unique”.
A good thing she has noticed is that the industry now “calls for women” and there is more “awareness of women in trade”. One of the more significant changes Kirsty has noticed is that maternity trousers are now offered in workwear.
Since being an apprentice, Kirsty has not only participated in this case study for National Apprenticeship Week but also, participated in a TV Interview and some Radio Interviews in 2024. She also finds that when visiting customer homes, she ends up having a “chat with them about women in the industry” to encourage others to investigate a non-stereotypical career path.
When asked what attracted her to her current role, she says “I’m a practical person and wanted a sustainable career and, I’m proud to go against the gender stereotypes.” She enjoys “job satisfaction as well as the skills and knowledge to do what I do. I’ve used my skills to work on my home”.
To other women who are applying for an apprenticeship in this industry, Kirsty says, “don’t feel put off by applying for a role in the industry as you could be passing up the opportunity to learn a transferable skill.” She also puts emphasis on the role being available to women even if they don’t realise it.
