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Charlie Wilkinson

from part-time waitress to Senior Electrical Engineer
I work with electricity systems that power our world!
Industry
Energy, gas and oil
Company
Origin Energy
Job Level
Senior

Ask me about

  • Why I was interested in becoming an Engineer
  • What it's like to work in a male-dominated environment
  • What made me change from English to Engineering

About me

  • International Experience

My journey to becoming an Electrical Engineer has been anything but typical. Although I loved physics at school, my strength in English led me to study it at university. I quickly realised it wasn’t the right path and left to start an Engineering apprenticeship—becoming the only girl among 100 apprentices!

After qualifying, I worked as the only female tradie on a large oil refinery, where I loved solving problems and understanding complex systems. I later completed a part-time degree in Electrical Engineering and became a qualified engineer. My career brought me to Australia, where I now work at the country’s largest Power Station, whilst also raising my two beautiful children. My unconventional path has taught me more than any traditional route ever could.

About my role

  • Independent
  • Passionate
  • Perfectionist
  • Reliable
  • Resourceful

Imagine being the person who helps keep the lights on at school, powers your laptop, and builds the future of clean energy. That’s what an electrical engineer in power generation does! They design, build, and fix systems that create and deliver electricity—from huge power plants to the lines that bring energy to homes and schools. Safety and reliability are always part of the job. One day, they might solve a tricky power problem; the next, they could be working on new technology to make energy cleaner and more efficient. Electrical engineers often work in teams, using creativity and brainpower to find smart solutions. Their work helps keep everything running—and that’s pretty awesome.

Education

  • Electrical Engineering Apprenticeship
  • Bachelor of Engineering Degree - Electrical Engineering
  • Diploma in Leadership & Management

Subjects

  • Design
  • English
  • General Mathematics (Maths A)
  • Languages
  • Physics
  • Psychology
  • Science

Hobbies

  • Beach adventures
  • Cooking
  • Running
  • Seeing family and friends
  • Travel

My career journey

Curious to know how I got here? Here’s a snapshot of my career pathway.
  1. Quit university
  2. Completed an Engineering apprenticeship
  3. Became the only girl tradie on site (UK)
  4. Went to university and studied Engineering
  5. Became a mum and moved to Australia

My typical day

My employer

Origin Energy is a leading Australian integrated energy company. Origin is a leading energy retailer with more than 4.5 million customer accounts, approximately 7,300 MW of power generation capacity and is also a large natural gas producer. Origin’s ambition is to lead the energy transition through cleaner energy and customer solutions, underpinned by three strategic pillars: unrivalled customer solutions; accelerate renewables and cleaner energy; and deliver reliable energy through the transition.