What is the bravest thing that you have done?

I have to say that would be moving up to Pickle Lake. It was difficult to leave my family, friends, and familiar environments behind in southern Ontario for a 20hr drive to "Ontario's Last Frontier" (man, Ontario's really big), so named as it is the most northern location in the province reachable by car year round. Still, I knew this was a necessary move to start my career, so I treated it like an adventure. Looking back, the experience greatly shaped the way I approach my job currently, for which I am most appreciative.

What do you think is the biggest misconception about women in STEM?

I believe the biggest misconception is that women are not as smart as men, when in reality it's that for the longest time, and even in modern times, women are not afforded the same opportunities as men. Societal norms take over from the day we're born to shape our interests towards what's considered more feminine roles. I'm happy to see a shift happening with parents nowadays away from that type of traditional upbringing. It's slow, but the change is there.

What does your day-to-day role look like?

My "day" actually starts the night before. I review the airport(s) I'll be operating into, especially those where I've never been or haven't been in awhile. After packing for my pairing, I crawl into bed for a good night's sleep. The next day, I get myself ready for work and drive to the airport. My crew and I meet in the crew room to dissect the flight plan, taking into account several factors such as routing, weather, fuel, and aircraft status. Once we're satisfied, we head out to the airplane (going through security and customs as required) to get it all set up while boarding occurs. The flight goes as the flight goes, with all pilots in the flight deck (anywhere from 2 to 4 of us depending on the route and phase of flight) managing the aircraft and solving issues as they arise (expected and unexpected weather, system errors, passenger problems, etc). After landing, we conduct our post flight duties, including checklists and paperwork. If we have another flight to conduct that day, we start the process again by examining the next flight plan. If we don't, we shut down the aircraft as required before exiting to meet our company arranged driver who gets us to our layover accommodations. The next day, we do it all again, and again, and again, until it's the last leg of the last day, where we get to go home afterwards.