An engineering student from Forest Gate has been named as a runner up for a national award.
Eileen Atieno, 21, was invited to the Houses of Parliament for the Rare Rising Stars awards ceremony.
The competition, run by diversity firm Rare, celebrates the achievements of the country’s best black students, where she was named in the top 10.
Eileen arrived in the UK from Kenya aged 11 after growing up in an abusive home, where she was denied access to primary education.
Despite this, she achieved two A grades and one A* at A level and was awarded a scholarship to study for a masters in Aerospace Engineering at Bristol University.
Eileen also acts as an ambassador encouraging girls to take up science, technology and maths subjects.
“Being an engineer is not just about being in overalls covered in oil,” she said.
“I want to tell the real story and make girls realise that you don’t have to attend a posh school to study engineering.”
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