Sophie's Story: Celebrating Women in Civil Engineering
Meet Sophie Ci, Geotechnical Engineer at Civiltest.
Sophie’s journey into civil engineering was inspired by her uncle, who, too, works in the industry. He would always share his project stories, and it ignited an interest and passion to learn more.
Beginning her academics in China, she completed the final two years of her Bachelor of Civil Engineering in Australia in December 2016. Then in February 2017, pursued a Master’s in Civil Engineering in Tasmania at the University of Tasmania.
During her time in Hobart, Sophie discovered a local civil engineering company through a classmate, marking the beginning of her professional journey. Life took an exciting turn when she met her now-husband, leading to a relocation to Melbourne in 2021. During this period, Sophie came across a job opening at Civiltest online, applied, and successfully secured her current role.
Sophie’s role at Civiltest involves a dynamic mix of on-site and office activities. Approximately half of her time is on-site, supervising soil technicians drilling boreholes and in situ soil tests during fieldwork. The other half is dedicated to software modelling and report preparation back in the office. Sophie occasionally engages in fieldwork using the Dynamic Cone Penetrometer (DCP), a tool used for evaluating the strength of soils. The DCP is a hammer weighing about 9kg.
“In the beginning, it was physically challenging. But after a month and lifting the DCP over 100 times daily—I’ve grown some muscles,” says Sophie. “It’s nice to play a part in some field work.”
Sophie says her motivation comes from “maintaining a positive outlook.” “When faced with life challenges, I prioritise solving the problem rather than focusing on how difficult the challenge may be”, says Sophie.
“I particularly love the travel component that takes me to various islands and unique locations across Australia,” says Sophie.
For her, the opportunity to explore diverse landscapes and work on projects in these distinctive settings adds a fascinating dimension to her career. Sophie finds joy in the ever-changing scenery and challenges each assignment brings.
“In engineering, my drive comes from believing that women can excel. While physical strength may differ, our capacity to learn software and acquire knowledge equals that of our male colleagues, empowering us to find our purpose in the industry,” says Sophie.
Reflecting on her experiences, the large Quarry Project in 2021 was a favourite.
The quarry site was excavated to approximately 25m depth and backfilled with soil between 2010-2018. It left a large slope with a lake at the bottom. Civiltest were contracted in 2021 to participate in the project.
The client wanted to construct a three-level commercial building beside the slope and on a deep fill.
“We suggested increasing the foundation to 27-28m depths (using piles), and our main role was to find the right treatment to maintain the slope stability using our experience and engineering methods,” says Sophie.
“Our teams used drones and 3D modelling software for site surveying and slope analysis software to find optimisation treatments to achieve slope stability.”
Sophie Ci’s journey in civil engineering is marked by a blend of academic achievements, professional growth, and a commitment to breaking barriers for women in the industry.