Two years on: nine mentees, six now in technical roles
Two years after her first DGS profile, Mariana Silva's informal mentorship programme has grown into something she didn't plan for — and can't stop.
The six women who found engineering roles through her guidance are now all employed. One has been promoted to team lead. Another is pursuing a PhD. The mentee Mariana once called "better at this than I was" has begun her own mentorship circle within Engineers Ireland's Women in Engineering network.
Mariana's checklist — the one she wrote herself when there was no other map — has been downloaded over 400 times and shared by Engineers Ireland's Chartership office as an unofficial resource for international applicants.
In the past year she has taken on two new mentees, both from the MENA region. She's also been formally invited to serve on a working group reviewing Engineers Ireland's international recognition pathway — the very process that cost her eighteen months.
Her day job is still engineering. She still turns up to DGS sessions unpaid.