Agreed.
I say this as a female engineer.
Were they deliberately trying to use just women engineers? They must’ve picked the lowest of the class and probably youngest, too. No experience, low grades?
Further, I heard this co. is run by a Cuban-American (ah, diversity - to get minority contracts) LAWYER who had troubles in that field. Not that large-enough companies can’t be run by “outsiders”, but engineering firm headed by a lawyer? Might look askance at that.
“Never put down to malice what you can ascribe to incompetence” - I think it was just sheer incompetence. Whether male or female or minority or not, it was incompetence. But run by a LAWYER — ok, now that is evil. Everyone knows engineers go to heaven and lawyers to the other place.