PSA: Representation matters.
And the more we can highlight, celebrate and showcase the incredible women and girls forging a career they love across the STEM industries, the more we can inspire more young women and girls to go after the roles they want.
It’s something we’re super proud to be able to do with our employer partners and their employee interviews, where we get to meet some fantastic people.
For International Day of Women and Girls in Science 2023, we wanted to bring your attention to some of these stories and ensure you don’t miss out on all the inspiration!
What is the International Day of Women and Girls in Science?
According to the United Nations, science and gender equality are vital for achieving international development goals – this includes raising access for women and girls into the fields of science and technology.
Since 2015, the 11th of February has been acknowledged as the International Day of Women and Girls in Science.
The UN sees this as a global opportunity for organisations to celebrate and make visible women’s work across STEM subjects and industries and, in doing so, keep increasing engagement and access for girls everywhere to pursue careers in the sector.
The day aims to address vital areas of inequality, including:
- Access to grants and funding: According to the UN, women are typically given smaller research grants than their male colleagues.
- More diversity in leading technologies: In cutting-edge fields such as artificial intelligence, only one in five professionals is a woman.
- Addressing skills shortages: Despite a shortage of skills in most technological fields, women still account for only 28% of engineering graduates and 40% of computer science and informatics graduates.
- Greater career access and professional recognition: Female researchers have shorter, less well-paid careers. Their work is underrepresented in high-profile journals, and they are often passed over for promotions.
Making a Difference: The Employers Stepping Up For Gender Equality in STEM
We’re incredibly lucky to partner with so many employers who have made opening the door for more women to pursue thriving careers in STEM a huge priority.
If you haven’t already dived into our employee interviews, they’re the perfect way to explore how these employers are stepping up to support women across their industries.
For International Day of Women and Girls in Science, we’ve collated a few of our favourites:
WATCH: Meet Monica, Graduate Engineer for John Holland
Being supported to kickstart your STEM career is a vital stepping stone – and that’s why the Graduate program with John Holland ensures that equality and diversity are a focus across the board.
Hear from Monica as she shares how she got started and how her role sets her up for long-lasting career success.
READ: Ebony’s STEM Career Journey with Programmed
Ebony shares her career journey with Programmed, working her way up to Playground Auditor with the full support of her manager.
In a typically male-dominated industry, Ebony’s career story is a real inspiration for what happens when you find your passion – and stick with it to succeed.
WATCH: Launching a STEM Career with an Apprenticeship at Downer
Come and meet Valentina, Apprentice Service Technician with Downer, as she shares all about her role, getting started in STEM with Downer and why the apprenticeship was the perfect stepping stone for her.
WATCH: Take Your Engineering Career to New Heights with John Holland
What happens when you reach the end of your graduate program? It’s a great question, and one Maddy is happy to answer with us as she shares her career journey into engineering with John Holland after completing their graduate program.
And One Last Thing
We hope you feel as inspired as we are after that!
We have one last video for you, which we encourage you to showcase in your classrooms with your friends, younger siblings and family because it highlights what International Day of Women and Girls in Science is all about!
Journalist Rachel Ignotofsky takes through a visual re-writing of women’s history in science to be more honest and inclusive.
https://www.ted.com/talks/rachel_ignotofsky_making_women_in_science_visible
Talk about wow!
However you acknowledge the 11th of February; we hope it’s filled with lots of inspiration and motivation.
