From Sri Lanka to Teesside... with love

Srimali Dixon from Sri Lanka came to Teesside University to study engineering and engineered a career, a home and husband.

Srimali, 29 graduated with a BEng (Hons) Civil Engineering, went straight into full-time employment with a Middlesbrough-based engineering company where she met the man who is now her husband.

As part of the four year sandwich course, Srimali spent a year on placement with Scott Wilson, an integrated design and engineering consultancy for the built and natural environments. She continued to work part-time for the company while she completed her degree and was then offered a full-time position.

'I really enjoyed doing my degree at Teesside. I settled in very quickly. The campus felt very welcoming and homely. It was great that it was so close to the facilities and town centre. That was important to me as an international student coming from so far away.'

It was while she was at Scott Wilson that she met town planning consultant John Dixon, who now works for Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council as a Planning Officer. The couple had a ‘double’ wedding in May 2011 – a ceremony in Darlington where they now live and a second celebration in Sri Lanka.

'This area is home to me. I love it here. I still have lots of contact with Teesside University and my lecturers still keep in touch. Although there are still relatively few women in civil engineering, I love the job my degree has led me to.

'Civil engineering is very broad and I hope to work on many varied projects. Scott Wilson is now part of URS Corporation which has its headquarters in San Francisco and a worldwide network of offices with around 47,000 staff, so there is a lot of opportunity open to me.

'So far I have worked on a number of different water treatment projects in Scotland to protect the environment which is very rewarding, the drainage services needed for an extension to Khalifa port in Dubai and a variety of other drainage and flood mitigation projects.'

Srimali is also a keen member of the Institute of Civil Engineers which holds regular events at Teesside University. 'This is excellent for students studying at the University to network with employers,’ she explains. ‘And I got the chance to go climb to the top of the Transporter Bridge at one event. If you’re interested in engineering that is a fantastic experience.'

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