Skip to content

Lucy Borland-Sentinella

from sandwich artist to Civil Engineer
I plan for road projects in Far North Queensland
Industry
Transport, Logistics and Warehousing
Company
Department of Transport and Main Roads, Queensland Government
Job Level
Senior

Ask me about

  • The difference between working for a consultancy vs gov department
  • Moving to a regional area after growing up in a big city
  • How I decided to be an engineer
  • What you can do with an engineering degree

About me

  • Regional Background

I always enjoyed maths and science at school, and puzzles and problem solving in my free time so I thought engineering might be a good fit. I didn’t know much about engineering going into the course at university, but I quickly learnt there were so many options with a range of disciplines from civil, environmental, mechanical, medical, electrical, and more. I chose a generalised civil engineering degree which again has so many options within it: water, geotechnical, structural, transport. An engineering degree opens up many doors and allows you to pick a work lifestyle and subject area that interests you. I personally work in transport planning where I spend most of my time between meetings and workshops, working at my computer, and the occasional site visit and inspection.

About my role

  • Logical
  • Optimistic
  • Reliable
  • Sociable
  • Understanding

Civil Engineers for Transport and Main Roads planning team identify and plan projects to improve our roads. Projects range from small to large. A small project may include reviewing an existing intersection and identifying line marking and signage changes to improve safety (under $500k). A large project could be designing a new bridge to increase capacity, safety, or resilience (over $100M). Once the project has been planned, it moves to detailed design, then construction, and finally will go to the maintenance team.

Education

  • Bachelor of Engineering (Civil) & Bachelor of Business (Management)

Subjects

  • Accounting
  • Business Studies
  • Chemistry
  • English
  • Food and Technology
  • Mathematical Methods (Maths B)
  • Physics
  • Science

Awards

  • Graduated with first class honours for Engineering degree

Hobbies

  • Beach adventures
  • Gym
  • Hiking
  • Running
  • Seeing family and friends

Pets

  • 1 Dog

15 year old me!!

“Keep enjoying goofing around with your friends because you have so much time to figure out what you want to do in life.”

My career journey

Curious to know how I got here? Here’s a snapshot of my career pathway.
  1. Always confident in maths
  2. Chose engineering from a careers booklet
  3. Graduate job in transport consulting
  4. Moved to a government job
  5. Becoming a Registered Professional Engineer of QLD

My employer

The Department of Transport and Main Roads moves and connects people, places, goods and services safely, efficiently and effectively across Queensland. We plan, manage and deliver Queensland's integrated transport environment to achieve sustainable transport solutions for road, rail, air and sea. Our vision is to create a single integrated transport network accessible to everyone. As part of the Queensland Government, we are committed to building a diverse workforce that represents the community we serve.