In March 2016, representatives from Australian Science Teachers Association (ASTA) were invited to BHP Billiton's head office in Melbourne, Australia, to listen to astronautical engineer and NASA New Horizons Mission Operations Manager Alice Bowman discuss her career trajectory and the role her choices in education played in her success. Alice Bowman knew from a very young age that she wanted a career as exciting as the sci-fi shows she watched on television. Today, as the Mission Operations Manager, Alice leads the team controlling NASA's New Horizons spacecraft on its voyage to Pluto and beyond from mission control at the John Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Maryland, USA. Alice discussed a range of topics including the mission to Pluto and how she used her scientific training and creativity to resolve some major problems. Alice's advice to teachers trying to engage today's students to study STEM subjects is to increase their exposure to different STEM careers by bringing STEM professionals into the classroom. Hearing directly from people who work in science/maths areas, and not just the more obvious occupations can show students the variety of roles that are available, and get them excited about their future. This event perfectly illustrated Alice's advice to teachers--to engage students to study STEM subjects, you need to connect the science with real life and increase their exposure to different STEM careers. Mission operations manager is now one career that those students in the audience can now aspire to.