Computing and Engineering host Girl Guide outreach event
Tue, 28 Feb 2017 12:30:00 GMT
THE University of Huddersfield was recently invited to a local Girlguiding group meeting to inspire the Guides, ages 10-14, to consider engineering as a possible career path.
An exciting evening of activities exploring engineering concepts was created by the School of Computing and Engineering to raise awareness that engineering is not just for boys. Females are currently drastically under-represented in the engineering sector, making up only 9% of all registered engineers and technicians in the UK.
During the meeting, seventeen Guides from Meltham Girl Guides took part in an activity that addressed the issues of gender bias and explored some of the reasons why females are reluctant to pursue the study of STEM subjects at FE and HE level.
Dr Leigh Fleming, the Subject Area Leader for Mechanical Engineering at the University of Huddersfield, delivered a presentation sharing her knowledge and passion for engineering, while showcasing some of the objects she has done research on in which are used in the medical sector. Third year Electrical Engineering undergraduate student Philippa Hazell was also on hand to answer any questions regarding her experience and route into engineering.
The final activity of the evening involved the girls getting creative to build a balloon powered “rocket car” which they then raced against each other. The Guides were asked to discuss what they could do to make the car go faster, to reinforce the engineering principles behind the activity.
Guide Leader, Sarah Glover, said of the event; “The Guides enjoyed meeting women working in engineering and finding out about the wide range of career opportunities engineering offers. They were surprised to learn that only 9% of engineers in the UK are female. They had a fun time with the activities and I have been told some went home with very enthusiastic tales of the evening.”
The University of Huddersfield’s School of Computing and Engineering strongly supports the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) campaign “Engineer a Better World” that aims to increase the numbers of young people aiming to becoming engineers and raise the proportion of girls who study the subject. As part of the evening, Guides were invited to participate in the IET’s social media campaign, #9PercentIsNotEnough, which has been designed to raise awareness of the fact that only 9% of the UKs Engineering workforce is female.
The event was a great success and received brilliant feedback from those involved. Dr Leigh Fleming commented “It was great to see how the guides recognised the gender stereotypes, but dismissed them in the same breath, there was a real enthusiasm and interest for Engineering, it is so important that more girls get the opportunity to encounter how exciting and rewarding Engineering can be.”
The School of Computing and Engineering looks forward to hosting similar events in the future.
