“I have never considered gender as something that can be an issue while choosing a career path.”

So says Sadaf Shah, the woman who is making a name for herself in the field of engineering by defeating the stereotypes and outdated thinking about girls’ education in the society. Shah, who belongs to a conservative Syed family, is the first woman petroleum engineer in Sindh. She is also the first woman drilling and completion engineer in Pakistan.

“I belong to a conservative and traditional Sindhi Syed family from interior Sindh, where sending daughters to school is considered a sin. My father had the courage to send us to school and stand by his decision when it mattered.” says Shah.

She got her early education at Jhuddo in Badin district where she stood first from class one to matriculation. She was among the top 10 successful candidates in the intermediate examination given by the Mirpur Khas Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education. Next, she sought and got admission at the Mehran University of Engineering and Technology to study petroleum engineering.

“I was the only girl in my batch of 96 students. One of my relatives asked me why I was studying petroleum engineering. He said a career in petroleum engineering would be built on tough field jobs that were not for girls. Some other people too told me that petroleum was the wrong choice. They feared that I’ll not be able to make it. However, I was determined to break the stereotype by rising to the challenge,“ Shah says.

“During the admission process a clerk at the university told my father that I was the only girl in the department. He laughed and told him my choice of a course of study and career had nothing to do with gender.”
“Twice during the first semester I was offered to switch to another degree programme because people thought that I had landed in the department by accident or mistake,“ Shah recalls.

She started her professional career in September 2011 with the Well Drilling Institute (WDI) in Karachi as a programme coordinator. She has also been a visiting lecturer at the MUET, Jamshoro. Later, she joined the United Energy, Pakistan.

Shah tells The News On Sunday, “I was hired as a field employee. I am one of the few women who perform field-based duties in Pakistan’s Oil and Gas industry. Girls everywhere in the world and not just in Pakistan are expected to shy away from field jobs. I broke that stereotype and showed people that I can perform field duties. I became the first female drilling engineer in Pakistan.”

“Natural resources have always attracted me. I chose engineering because I was interested in technological discoveries.
“My village is in Badin district, which is rich in oil. I learnt about the oil and gas prospecting and exploration a bit and it always fascinated me to see the hydrocarbons produced underground brought to the surface. Now I am working as a drilling and completions engineer at the UEPL.”

Sadaf Shah says there is a lot of difference between studying at the university and practical experience in the industry. “I had to prove myself every time a promotion or an opportunity came by. My male peers did not have it that hard”, she says.

“I am among the few females in the oil and gas industry in Pakistan to have performed field duties. During my first hitch at a rig, a fellow engineer came over and asked me if this field was actually my first choice.”

Shah has been part of the oil and gas industry for more than nine years. She has had field as well as office assignments. She says of her experience at rig sites:
“As a trainee I used to work at the rig sites and assist the well-site leader for operations and make the arrangements for operational requirements. Then I moved to head office where I worked on completions and work-overs and visited field for completion jobs on the wells. We used to design and run an assembly down the hole for hydrocarbon production. Field experience is always good for practical learning. An office position is an opportunity to learn management and decision making skills.”

“The journey has broadened my vision and given me decision making skills in oil and gas business,“ she says.

Shah has also founded the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE). “The SPE is a non-profit knowledge-sharing organisation where we volunteer for our industry to share knowledge and experience and work welfare of the society. It has several committees in technical, non-technical and management-related categories. A Diversity and Inclusion Committee has been launched to promote diversity and inclusion within the industry. It was initially called the Women in Energy Committee and focused on promoting females in the oil and gas sector.”

“I have always been an advocate for diversity and inclusion. I am a firm believer in gender equality. I did not have a lot of role models and female leaders in technical roles to look up to. I want to make sure that by the time I leave, there is someone people can look up to. I want to play my part for this cause.”

The writer is a journalist based in Sindh