Reminiscing about her 25-year career working in upstream oil and gas, Mel (Mechanical and Offshore Engineering, Class of 1998), remembers her time at school and university like it was yesterday.

We were keen to get her back on campus to hear more of her story, her experiences as the UK’s first female Rig Manager, receiving an Honorary Master’s and what brought her to RGU.

“RGU has changed a lot since I graduated,” she shared while we waited for the cameras to roll. “Back then, the schools were spread across the city and now they’re all here on a vibrant campus along the River Dee.

“It really gives students and staff the opportunities to enjoy the extra-curricular and community events that happen here.”

Now working as an independent consultant under her business Metis Energy Consultants, Mel works with companies to help them grow and excel. Whether it’s business development, strategic planning or organisational improvements, she loves it all.

 “The best part about what I do is the variety. That’s both in the work itself and the broad cross-section of people and organisations that I work with.

“What gives me the most satisfaction is going into companies and making a difference in a short time frame. And it all comes down to engaging with people internally across all levels of the organisation as well as clients and other stakeholders. It goes beyond the technical aspects of the role, to providing leadership as well as mentorship to support people in their career development.”

With energy transition at the top of the agenda, Mel highlights that the skills are there but just some thinking is required to change the application. 

“A lot of the skills are directly transferrable to renewables. From HSE to regulatory through to project management and procurement – the list goes on. There’s huge scope for cross-sector collaboration to accelerate the energy transition and to reduce costs and improve performance by leveraging on the oil and gas industry experience, resources and innovation.”

Hear more of Mel’s reflections on her time studying at RGU, her career highlights and the opportunities waiting in the world of STEM, in her Alumni in Focus video interview.