I got a call from a mother with a daughter in year 10 that is keen on engineering and who wanted some help to find programs/initiatives to help her daughter learn and understand more about engineering and how to become one. Among ideas of seeking work experience with FLEET or getting their school to organize a lab and educational tour of FLEET labs, I said I would check out some of the opportunities out there that her daughter might like to investigate and get inspiration from to facilitate her interest in all things engineering. While FLEET’s research is largely in quantum physics, we have teams of material scientist engineers helping develop the next generation of materials to be used in low-energy electronics. We are a multi-disciplinary team. Anyway, I thought I would also post what I found on the FLEET website in case it of interest to others. It is by no means exhaustive and I have focussed on mostly the Eastern states where the student lived and with an emphasis on Girls in STEM/engineering. it is likely primary and secondary teachers are already aware of many of these resources, so maybe the target audience is the parents and students, but I will continue to add to this page as I come across opportunities.
For any further help, students, teachers (anyone really) can reach out to us via our Ask the Physicists Facebook page with any questions about physics/engineering – the science stuff, careers stuff, mentor stuff – anything where our expertise may be of value.
University programs for secondary students (and some for girls into STEM)
UNSW
Women in Engineering. The Women in Engineering program aims to encourage girls to pursue engineering degrees and careers and support women studying engineering at UNSW.
Girls in engineering club for high school students interested in engineering as a career.
University of Sydney
Women in engineering: All sort of opportunities here. Check the links for opportunities for high school student to participate in varied programs to engage girls in STEM.
University of Wollongong
Stem camp for girls: Their four-day summer STEM Camp provides young women entering Years 10 and 11 in 2021 a fun and hands-on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) experience and an exciting introduction to careers in STEM.
Monash University
Monash Engineering Girls (MEG)
A community for high school girls interested in maths, science, technology and design.
There are some interesting links to other resources at the bottom of this page
University of Melbourne
Girl Power in Engineering and IT: A program for female high school students, contributing towards gender parity in engineering and IT disciplines. For girls from Australia with an interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
And a news story about the program here.
Victoria University
Women in science and engineering (WISE): The program supports current female students and inspire future generations of women to choose engineering & science careers. They run hands-on workshops in science, technology, engineering & mathematics (STEM) disciplines for secondary school students.
University of Queensland
Women in engineering. They have a school outreach program through their Engineering Futures Series that seeks to work with schools to provide flexible options for engaging high school students in the world of engineering
Other programs
Chapters run engineering and technology workshops free-of-charge in their local communities, focusing on encouraging girls from primary to secondary school to explore an interest, as well as cultivate self-confidence, in these areas.
There are Robogals chapters in ACT, NSW, VIC, TAS, QLD and SA
One-day programs for Year 9 and 10 high school students demonstrating that they have the power to change the world through engineering, in collaboration with universities and industry.
For some inspiration
International Women in Engineering event (2021)
For International Women In Engineering Day 2021, Female Engineers at Monash (FEM) and Monash Engineering Student’s Society (MESS) hosted a virtual event exploring the importance of gender diversity in engineering.
Stories of women in physics from Sydney Quantum Academy. Some inspirational stuff here