“I’ve always been into logic. Even as a kid. I loved puzzles,” Beattie says.
“I loved problem-solving and I always wanted to be in science and engineering. I realised I really loved programming and it was my physics teacher that broke the news to me that I didn’t love physics, I really liked engineering. At high-school level, physics and engineering are very, very similar. In fact, it’s probably more engineering that you do. It was pretty natural.”
After finishing at Nelson College for Girls, in 2021, Beattie moved to Auckland, where she completed a degree in mechatronics engineering at the University of Auckland.
“It was very cool. There was a lot of controls engineering and that was my bread and butter. What I enjoyed the most was the programming of machines. We got to work on a lot of really enjoyable projects. We would programme robots to do a whole range of things,” she says.
Upon graduating, Beattie knew she wanted to head overseas and travel. Then came the start of a sequence of events which would change her life.
“I hadn’t applied for any jobs until one of my friends sent through a link to an opportunity at Red Bull Engineering, so it was really a fluke application that I sent in November last year. I didn’t really think much of it, I thought it was a long shot. Formula One was always a pipe dream, so it was cool to stumble upon it.”
Beattie was one of more than 3500 applicants for a coveted graduate position with the team. Following her initial application, she went through a rigorous selection process, starting with a technical test from home before finding out that she had reached the interview stage and would be travelling from New Zealand to Milton Keynes to continue pursuing the position.
Eloise Beattie among the serious machinery at the MK7 Building, where the Red Bull Academy and assessment day were held.
“It was insane that it happened so quickly. I got the message in late December and I was in Milton Keynes by the first week in January,” Beattie says.
“The assessment day was amazing. I got to see the factory and meet really cool people, as well as having the actual interview. I flew home and got the news a few weeks later that I had the job. They called me at midnight New Zealand time and I missed the call, so I was left terrified, not knowing whether I wanted to get my hopes too high.”
With a start date of September 1 quickly locked in, Beattie flew over to Europe at the end of May and spent three months travelling in Europe before getting down to business.
“You’ve got to make the most of being close to everything,” she says.
Since the start of September, Beattie has been employed as a graduate control engineer with Red Bull Powertrains, working on the energy reduction system. Her appointment coincides with two significant shifts, one for Formula One as a whole, the other for Red Bull themselves.
First, the sport is undergoing significant regulation changes in 2026, which will see lighter, more efficient cars, which are also more sustainable. From there, the hope is that there will be more wheel-to-wheel racing, which will appeal to fans. With 11 teams and 22 drivers on the Formula One grid in 2026, it’s time for all competitors to reset after a set of regulations that has seen Red Bull largely dominate the sport since 2021.
Some of the Red Bull team, pictured after Max Verstappen’s win at Monza, Italy.
In addition, Red Bull’s long-standing relationship with engine supplier Honda comes to an end at the end of this year, a change which sees a new in-house division, Red Bull Powertrains, collaborate with Ford to not only supply engines for Verstappen and his Red Bull teammate, but also their junior team, Racing Bulls, which is currently home to Kiwi driver Liam Lawson.
“The launch of the Red Bull Ford Powertrains era represents not only a bold step into the future, but a powerful expression of what’s possible when world-class engineering, innovation and passion come together,” Red Bull Racing CEO Laurent Mekies says.
Beattie says: “It’s cool work.”
“Everything is about looking forward. There’s always that foresight to see where the future’s going with it and where the regulations are going to be.”
The graduate role lasts for two years and at that time, Beattie and Red Bull will sit down and see what the future holds. But there’s plenty of work to be done in the meantime, in a sport that is always innovating.
“It’s an amazing programme at Red Bull. They focus on building up young engineers into what they want to be in the workforce. Fingers crossed I’ll be here for the foreseeable future.”
Just 12 months ago, Beattie could only have dreamt of where she is today, and she has words of advice and encouragement for any young women or men that want to enter the sport via this route.
“Have the audacity to just go for it. You never know what’s going to happen and as cliched as it sounds, you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. Back yourself. I wasn’t the most qualified applicant and I had zero experience and as a graduate you’re not expected to have any. It’s the work ethic and the ability to learn that got me the role. Apply, because you never know.”
This story was originally published at Newsroom.co.nz and is republished with permission.