Upcoming Women in Engineering Panel Discussion - 9 July

Dear Supporters,
Leading up to our Women in Engineering & IT Hands on Day as part of Australian Engineering Week.............Please see below an upcoming event at Engineers Australia Chatswood Offices. There are many factors involved in influencing women to become engineers and scientists. Hear from a variety of speakers across all demographics. REGISTER HERE
Please email all enquiries to sydneywie [at] engineersaustralia.org.au

A warm thank you is extended to our friends at Engineers Australia-Sydney Wie Division and in particular our 2011 UTS Women in Engineering Scholar, Elizabeth (Biomedical Engineering student) for holding such an event.

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GovHack 2013 – Australia’s Largest Hackathon

Over the first weekend of June, about 1,000 IT Enthusiasts formed 130 teams and put in 20,000 hours of research and development over just 48 hours for Australia’s largest Hackathon:  GovHack. 

Through the 48-hour “festival of authorised hacking”, GovHack participants use publicly available government data to create new and interesting ways of presenting it – through websites, apps, data visualisations and creative mashups.  Participants compete for a share of $170,000 in prize money across various award categories.

This year, Westpac Group Technology Graduate  and UTS IT Alumni (2011) Rania Ramadan-Jradi led a team of seven to be awarded a National Prize for their app, “When will your house be underwater?” The app, which is accessible across mobile, tablet and PC, calculates the years remaining before your own house will be underwater, based on the latest climate change models and sea level forecasts.

“We wanted to bring the topics of sustainability and climate change to a much more personal level – your own home, or your children or grandchildren’s home,” says Rania, who graduated from the University of Technology Sydney’s BIT Co-Op Scholarship in 2011. The app utilises the latest in geo-location technology to automatically pinpoint your current location, display a photo of your home and an animation of water submerging the building... with an accompanying timer for the number of years you have left to keep your feet dry. 

As a passionate ambassador of Westpac’s Technology Graduate program, as well as industry initiatives such as Girl Geek Dinners and Girl Geek Coffees, Rania says she is thrilled to see “an environment in GovHack where gender, background and experience don’t matter. It’s about getting in there, learning a lot and having fun!”
Sponsored by Microsoft, Google, Amazon and various Government agencies, the competition demonstrates the power of innovation and technology when applied to data. Any and all IT enthusiasts are invited, including developers, designers, gamers and even complete amateurs.

"With a data hungry technically literate generation on its way through the current school system, understanding the fundamentals of how to analyse and communicate effectively with data are critical in ensuring a strong industry and indeed, a strong democracy," added Pia Waugh, director of co-ordination and Gov 2.0, Australian Government Information Management Office.


Rania's Key Messages:

• Communication is incredibly vital.
• A great team culture and attitude (and ‘Team Rules’ defined upfront) will get you through the tough times.. such as 52 hours of sleep deprivation.
• Agile + Scrum methodology were a perfect match for our 48hr timeboxed project, but some people have misconceptions around Agile (eg. “It’s just waterfall without documentation.. right?”)
• Undefined assumptions are bad. This led to one of our team members – an applied statistician – accidentally bringing down our Prod Site, and replacing it with a broken Dev build, because he (understandably) didn’t know the difference between a Prod or Dev Server – and we had never explained... This was 2mins and 30 seconds before the submission deadline. ARGH!
• Reaching out and accepting help in crisis is a good idea. We reached out to the mentors roaming the floors – from Google, NICTA and Govt representatives – and even roped the wandering media and camera-men to help us out with last-minute tasks. Delegate delegate delegate!
• Amazing things happen as a team.

Keen to get involved next year? Easy! Just contact Rania and she'll be sure to let you know when the next event is announced. Otherwise, keep your eyes peeled for a GovHack announcement on ABC / SBS.

Hope to see some UTS students and alumni there next year!
PS: Please let Rania know if you’d like to see the app – She'd love some beta testers...

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UTS:IT Undergraduate Courses and Scholarships Information Evening - 11 June 2013 , Register Now

Hi Everyone,

We would love to invite any students in Years 10, 11 or 12, or TAFE students, or anyone wanting to know more about studying IT at university, to an upcoming event we are hosting at our city campus.

UTS:Information Technology are holding an Undergraduate Courses and Scholarships Information Evening to provide IT course and scholarship information to students and parents, and mature-aged individuals or career-changers.

With our practice-based learning model, we are a recognised leader in IT education in Australia. Our links with the IT industry are second to none, with our courses developed in consultation with industry. Our courses are continually being updated to keep pace with the fast moving IT industry and provide a valuable combination of technical knowledge and practical experience. Our graduates go on to diverse roles in every sector of the IT industry in countries around the globe.

Bachelor of Information Technology Co-operative Scholarship - How To Apply

There will be a two round application process for the Bachelor of Information Technology Co-operative Scholarship Program for the 2014 intake. The online application form for round 1 is open now and will close on 21 June 2013.

Undergraduate Mid-year Intake

The Bachelor of Science in IT, Diploma in IT Professional Practice will be offered for the Spring 2013 mid-year intake. Applications can be made through the UAC website.

2014 Undergraduate Intake

The undergraduate courses available for the Autumn (March) 2014 intake are:

• Bachelor of Information Technology;
• Bachelor of Science in IT, Diploma in IT Professional Practice;
• Bachelor of Science in Games Development;
• Bachelor of Business / Bachelor of Science in IT;
• Bachelor of Science in IT / Bachelor of Arts in International Studies;
• Bachelor of Science in IT / Bachelor of Laws.

Scholarships

Undergraduate scholarships available to local undergraduate students applying before enrolment are:

• The Bachelor of Information Technology Co-operative Scholarship Program

Registration

Registration for the evening will open on Tuesday 30 April 2013 and close at 10pm on Sunday 9 June 2013.

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Lucy Mentoring Launch 2013

On 15 May the Lucy Mentoring Program Launch for 2013 was hosted by Westpac at their offices in Sydney CBD.  The night was an opportunity for student mentees and mentors to meet for the first time and network.  The Program this year has seen a record 48 female Engineering and IT students paired with professional women from over 18 different organisations within the public and private sector. The participating organisations this year include AECOM, Alcatel-Lucent, Avanade, Cisco, Commonwealth Bank, IBM, Mi9, NAB, Nexus Point Solutions, OzForex, PM-Partners, Railcorp, Reserve Bank of Australia, SMEC Australia, Stonebridge Systems, Suncorp, Thiess, UTS and Westpac. 

The night kicked off with Program Director - Women in Engineering and IT,  Bronwyn Holland providing an official welcome to all guests and providing a brief overview of the Lucy Mentoring Program since its inception at UTS in 2010. 

Guests then heard from two inspiring speakers including Tina Conlon, Chief Information Officer, Product & Enterprise Services at Westpac who has over 25 years experience across IT and financial services. Her current responsibilities include enterprise wide technology solutions such as Cards & Domestic payments, Core systems and Corporate systems. Tina outlined her career path which lead to her current role at Westpac. She also provided key career advice and encouraged students to always challenge themselves and to never be complacent.

The second guest speaker for the evening was Emilie Ho, a recent IT graduate from UTS in 2011 and current Westpac Technology Analyst. Emilie self-reflected on her own career path including the transition from high school, selecting IT as her chosen profession and finally to her experience of working at Westpac in her current role.

The night was very enjoyable with students and professionals swapping details before embarking on their five-month mentoring journey between May and October 2013. UTS is very thankful for all involved in the Program and we look forward to further collaborations. 

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BIG Day In - Industry Event for UTS Technology Students- Tuesday 7 May

Attention all UTS students studying a technology related degree, including research students. Are you seeking employment to compliment your studies? Or will you soon be seeking that industry role after years of investing in your education?

The Australian Computer Society (ACS) Foundation, understands that so few students know what roles and opportunities are available to them in IT, which is why the UTS IT student society created the Big Day In IT careers conference to be held at UTS on Tuesday 7 May.

First run at UTS in 2012 and attracting a massive 220 attendees, Big Day In is an IT careers conference with a difference – it’s organised, run and hosted by students, for students. The ACS Foundation facilitates leading speakers from companies such as Microsoft, Coca Cola, IBM, Westpac and WiseTech Global t o speak about the future of technology and how students can get involved in shaping the future.

We have observed there is a gap in delivering IT career info to students and believe the BEST way for them to get this information is to hear from people with unbeatable “been there, done that” experience. We believe in students and that they are ready to hear the difference between success and mediocrity. This is why we are throwing out the textbooks and are bringing phenomenal speakers from leading industry innovators to University Hall at UTS to talk about their career and how they got there.

As a result of the success of the previous Big Day In, we’re excited to announce that in 2013 we’re holding separate High School and University student conferences. The University Student exclusive Big Day In for 2013 will be held on 7 May at the Aerial Function Centre, UTS.

We would like to invite you to participate in this incredible opportunity to help build the movement of students who care about their careers and are taking action to get ahead now.

Visit the website now at www.thebigdayin.com.au and pick up your ticket for only $10.

Lunch and snacks will be supplied on the day so just bring yourselves along and find out what ICT could mean for you. 
 
Date: Tuesday 7 May 2013
Time: 9:00am-4:30pm (attend as you wish)
Location: Aerial Function Centre, Level 7 - Building 10, UTS Broadway Campus
Register: http://www.acs.org.au/networking-and-events/events/upcoming-events/event-details?eveID=30259625226819 

Best Regards,

Krystle Ng

2013 President IT Student Society

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Getting Hands on with STEM

198 female high school students from 30 schools around NSW and the ACT gathered at the University of Technology, Sydney for the 2013 bi-annual Women in Engineering and IT Hands On Day on Friday 5 April. The day consisted of  interactive activities which encourage 13-18-year-old female high school students to consider engineering and IT as a career option.

Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) activities included:

• simulating earthquakes and learning about the power of amplitudes and frequencies with UTS’s remote lab
• the chance to learn the basics of Javascript, one of the world’s most common programming languages
• using magnets, batteries and wires to make an artificial heart and
• discovering how robots can be used to save lives following natural disasters
• careers talks from various UTS Alumni including Daphne Chong, Senior Software developer at Mi9.

Thanks to UTS’s strong links engaging with industry the day also featured representatives from Engineers without Borders, UTS Motorsports, UTS Centre for Health Technologies, ARC Centre of Excellence for Autonomous Systems, Commonwealth Bank, Microsoft, Tech Girls are Chic- Not Just Geek, Females in  IT and Telecommunications(FITT) and Symantec; as well as staff and student societies from the Faculty of Engineering and IT.

The Faculty’s Equity & Outreach Coordinator Laura Waibel said events like Hands On Day are important in convincing high school girls of the long-term societal benefits of studying and working in IT and Engineering.

‘’These industries are extremely important in shaping a sustainable and technology-driven future and women are currently underrepresented in both engineering and IT. We're hoping to change that one female high school student at a time because individuals regardless of gender and society as a whole stands to benefit from increased female participation in engineering and IT,’’ said Ms Waibel whose team were impressed by the energy of students at Hands On Day – particularly those who woke early to make the journey from Newcastle and the far south coast.

The next Hands On Day takes place on 6 August. Places fill up quickly so teachers are encouraged to book places early. Parents are encouraged to register their daughters to attend if schools are not able to allow an excursion.

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Women in BOC Networking Event

On 14 March, BOC, a leading global gases and engineering company, and Chandler McLeod, a large provider of human resources solutions, hosted a Women working with BOC networking event.

The event was a great opportunity to network with women from BOC and Chandler McLeod as well as a number of women students pursuing a career in engineering, IT and other sectors. The highlight of the evening was a discussion panel with three successful BOC managers. These women shared their experiences in the company in terms of engagement, career opportunities, mentoring, working conditions, parental leave and flexible working arrangements.

One of the speakers was a young manager - Kate. Kate has secured a position at BOC after completing the BOC Graduate Development Program. Kate shared her passion for the industry and how she has seen real possibilities for women to move up in an industry traditionally dominated by men. She said that she was reading a BOC magazine featuring top managers in the company and realised they were all men. She then turned to the Master of Ceremonies and said: “I would like to change that”.

I was impressed by the structure of BOC‘s graduate development program, where this year, a large number of participants are women. Each graduate is assigned a mentor from BOC who helps with the learning experience and with any difficulty arising. The mentor also discusses topics like career paths with the graduate.

BOC seems to be genuinely interested in supporting women in engineering and IT so I suggest its worth checking out their graduate program!

By Maritza Messina, Industry Liaison Manager, Industry Partnering Unit, FEIT

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UTSpeaks - Women at the Summit Event

You can now view this event at
http://newsroom.uts.edu.au/events/2013/03/women-at-the-summit

Will Australia deliver on women in leadership?

When will we see equal opportunity for women to lead in business and the community? World-wide there is growing pressure for increasing the participation of women in leadership.
Seven countries have now adopted mandatory regulation to ensure greater participation of women at company board level. Will Australia's voluntary approach match this international progress?

Featuring influential and insightful panellists, this provocative Q&A forum will explore the issue of women participating at the highest levels of endeavour and leadership. Be sure to add your voice to a debate that will ultimately determine when women finally break through the glass ceiling.

Introduced by Professor Thomas Clarke & Alice Klettner, UTS Centre for Corporate Governance and lead researchers for the Workplace Gender Equality Agency’s 2012 Australian Census of Women in Leadership.

Moderated by Deborah Cameron
Broadcast journalist, community relations specialist and facilitator, Deb Cameron is inspired by the cause of growing women in leadership.

Panellists:
Claire Braund, Executive Director of Women on Boards
Elizabeth Bryan, Chairman, Caltex Australia Ltd
Verity Firth, Chief Executive Officer, Public Education Foundation Ltd
Judith Fox, Policy Director, Chartered Secretaries Australia
Christine Holgate, CEO & Managing Director, BLACKMORES

Date: Wednesday 6 March, 2013
UTSPEAKS: is a free public lecture series presented by UTS experts discussing a range of important issues confronting contemporary Australia, proudly supported by the UTS Union

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Women in Tech

This infographic can be found at: http://www.mbaonline.com/women-in-tech/

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Lucy Mentoring Program Graduation

On Tuesday 16 October, UTS Broadway campus played host to the final function of the Lucy Mentoring Program for 2012. The Program, originally an initiative of the NSW Government Office for Women's policy almost ten years ago, has been coordinated by the Faculty of Engineering and IT since 2010. This year from May until October over 40 female Engineering and IT students were paired with professional women from 23 different organisations within the public and private sector. Students spent 35 hours in an industry workplace, learning about career dynamics, how to balance work with family and other factors, as well as how to apply the theory being learned every day within the halls of University. The students' presented their insights based on their experience to an audience consisting of Mentors, Industry Guests and senior Faculty staff as well as colleagues from the UTS Equity & Diversity Unit. Guest Speaker on the evening was Sharon Dickson, Honorary Secretary from the Australian Computer Society's NSW Branch Executive Committee, who kindly sponsored the evening emphasizing their ongoing commitment to diversity within the Australian ICT industry.


Please see a final Program from the evening below. 

   
UTS Women in Engineering & IT Program, a division of the Faculty's External Engagement Portfolio, is grateful for the ongoing contribution of our industry Mentor's in supporting and developing young women studying technical degree programs. We are thankful for your advice providing insight, career awareness and friendship and we look forward to keeping in touch.    

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Upcoming Event - NSW Girl Geek Coffee Meet-up, 9 October @ Microsoft

Fancy a meetup with women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics over a good cup of coffee (or tea, chai, etc.)?  Join Girl Geek Coffees!

Meet up and network with girl geeks in STEM and other similar disciplines at Microsoft's offices in North Ryde!

Date: Tuesday 9th of October

Time: 2PM-5PM

Location: 1 Epping Rd North Ryde (train station nearby)

RSVP: http://nswggc-october2012.eventbrite.com/# 

There will be some awesome activities on the day such as a tour of the Microsoft offices, a group technology design contest (geeky prizes are up for grabs) and a networking session (with an opportunity to show off your skills on the Xbox Kinect!)

Note: We have a limited amount of tickets so please save the date and RSVP as soon as you can!  

Guy geeks are most welcome, but please invite a girl geek to come along with you :)

This GGC meet up is kindly sponsored by Microsoft Australia.

At our meetups you get: 

At our meetups you get:

• FREE Membership!
• FREE Coffee!
• FREEbies

 For more information, please visit our website.

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UTS Women in Engineering Alumni Event

It’s a rainy afternoon in Sydney, but the inside of the Powerhouse Museum is warm and alive with music and the smell of good food. Guests were welcomed in front of a giant 1920’s steam train and invited to take a look at the museum's Engineering Excellence Awards technology exhibition. Engineers from around Sydney, UTS alumni and staff were treated to canapés and drinks before presentations began.  
Themed, "Where have the flowers gone?",

the meeting is an invitation to UTS  engineering graduates to reflect on where they are now and share perspectives on the
experience for women in the profession today. 
The rate of growth of women in the engineering profession in Australia does not reflect even the small increases in university enrolments since the 1990’s. Reasons for leaving engineering uncovered by successive industry surveys include lack of flexible working conditions, workplace culture, lack of career development and pay inequity. At the same time, women are succeeding in engineering by adapting and by innovating and by finding progressive employers. What prospects are there for change that will better sustain and help retain women to succeed and flourish in their chosen fields and how can we collaborate to see it happen?
This topic was discussed by three panelists: Professor Marian Baird, Drenka Andjelic and Fiona Coe.
Professor Marian Baird has been a key policy advisor to government in the development of new legislation – Paid Parental Leave, Fair Work and the proposed Workplace Gender Equality Act.

Drenka Andjelic (Alumni) has put her values about work life balance into practice in the establishment of her project management company in the construction industry, and has won recognition for her innovation.

Fiona Coe (Alumni) has been a strong advocate for women in engineering as a student, and she has worked hard to make her professional workplace a more sympathetic environment. Now she is on a quest to find a way to resolve her passions with engineering practice.
After the speakers, there was a lively discussion  with many questions from the audience. Some interesting points of contention were raised and different view points discussed. You can view the entire presentation section of the evening by clicking here.

From left to right: Bronwyn Holland, Drenka Andjelic,
Fiona Coe and Prof. Marian Baird

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Zonta Club of Sydney Breakfast - 'Women in Engineering' Award

This morning, students and staff of UTS were invited to breakfast with some of Sydney's most influential women in business, hosted at Westpac Place. Zonta International is an global initiative that is aimed at advancing the status of women in numerous fields. Once again this September, Zonta is celebrating the history of achievements of women in engineering. The breakfast began with a fantastic presentation from Sandra Triulzi, National Diversity Manager at Abigroup, a true pioneer for diversity and gender equality in the field of engineering.

Apart from offering a space to mingle, Zonta also provides encouragement for the next generation of engineers by offering financial support. This year a record number of UTS female students applied for the 2012 Zonta International Club of Sydney Breakfast Award, which was given to Su Myat Khine Win- congratulations Su Myat! Su Myat is in her second year of the Bachelor of Engineering, Diploma in Engineering Practice, majoring in Civil Engineering. Su Myat gave a short presentation at the breakfast, giving us some insight into her background and her passion for civil engineering. She began a medical degree in her home country of Burma,  before moving to Australia and finishing a nursing degree which she completed in Australia. Su Myat has been working as a qualified nurse for many years. However, her curiosity for Civil Engineering was so strong that it inspired her to change professions. Though Su Myat outlined the various challenges associated with starting a new profession after so many years away from the Maths & Physics classroom - she has been doing very well in her course and has thoroughly been enjoying her studies at UTS. Upon receiving the Zonta award, Su Myat announced she would be donating $300 back to the club, which prompted a standing ovation! Su Myat's story is truly inspiring and hearing it was definitely the highlight of the morning.

Award applicants (L-R) Jaime Cheuk, Sixiao Lu, Amy Burrows, Sy Myat Khine Win (winner), Kulsoom Hussain, Sally Anderson and Sijjal Tasneem. 

All award applicants were invited to attend the breakfast as well as getting the opportunity to mingle with Zonta Club of Sydney Breakfast members that work in various industries throughout Sydney. Su Myat Khine Win will be officially acknowledged as the Zonta Award winner at the Faculty of Engineering and IT award night in October.

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Girl Geek Dinner : Continuing on Computing Ideas Through the Ages - How Nerdy Women Help Each Other and More

This June, geeky girls over three generations gathered at the Atlassian office in Sydney city- all anticipating a night of great ideas about engineering and IT with delicious pasta, drinks and chocolate.

The first speaker, Peggy Kuo, a developer at Atlassian, shared with us various tips on how to make websites extra 'shiny'. By using HTML5 to give the site structure and content, then further polishing it with CSS3, websites become a lot more representative. She also recommended some other sites that may assist the audience to finding or making better website templates.

The second speaker, Deborah Martin, a retired software engineer, shared with us her joy in teaching seniors, especially elderly women over the age of 55, on how to use a computer. She discussed the reasons and benefits of why these women turn to her and her computer club in Parramatta for help in learning about technology. Her work also extends to educating the elderly about internet scams, security on the net and online banking. She has found that seniors are more eager to learn and in particular, her course on how to use Facebook is very popular with seniors, who hope to understand their children and grandchildren by keeping up with the internet trend.

The last speaker, Nabeelah Ali, a frontend developer at Atlassian, shared with us a slice of her life story from engaging in programming since she was young to finishing her mechatronics engineering degree and now to being a programmer. She also discussed findings from the Flow Theorem. In particular, she emphasized the importance of uninterrupted time - 'being within the zone' and how it has contributed to the success of others. Nabeelah also voiced her opinion that open plan office space may not work in helping individuals stay 'in the zone'.

In friendly but no less nerdy company, the evening ended with an open floor shout-out of job offerings, job seeking and the promotion of other events that other girl geeks are organizing, followed by much socializing, applause and laughter.

For those who missed out on this fantastic event, don't you worry! The next event will be around the corner and it's absolutely fine to have gents come along too!

By Jenny Lui, Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical & Mechatronics), UTS

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Best Foot Forward Career Skills Workshop: Writing Effective Applications

In the WiE&IT office, we know that applying for internships or graduate positions can be a daunting and rather overwhelming process. That’s why last week WiE&IT hosted a careers workshop in conjunction with the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA). This workshop was aimed at better equipping undergraduate and postgraduate female students to prepare for joining the workforce.

The manager of the CBA Graduate Program, Elise, gave an insightful and inspiring presentation on some of the processes involved when constructing a resume and filling out applications. She covered resume structure, cover letters, wording, psychometric testing and filling out applications in the session. The workshop was facilitated by Maria, the CBA Manager for Organisational Development, who gave some insightful comments and tips on how best to communicate achievements. Some important discussion points included:

-          How best to structure your resume

-          Protocol on providing references

-          When proofreading: read, re-read and re-re-read!

-          Use professional language

-          Apply for positions well before the closing date

-          Take your time to complete an application; its alright to save it and come back later

-          Never undersell yourself!

At the end of the presentation, students were encouraged to apply for some of the graduate programs available at CBA. Currently CBA are recruiting for their Summer Internship Program. Applications close in August so start your applications now!

As the workshop closed and attendees helped themselves to a little afternoon tea, the enthusiasm told us that that everyone had learned something new.

The next workshop is on 7 December 2012, registrations will open soon!

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Lucy Mentoring Program Launch

The 2012 Lucy Mentoring Program was launched on the evening of Wednesday 23 May, and was kindly hosted by the Commonwealth Bank of Australia at their Darling Park offices. 

Empowerment, support and development were the themes of the Lucy Mentoring Program Launch, an industry event launching a four-month-long partnership of creativity and professional development between current female Engineering and IT students, and females in senior management and technical roles from some of Australia’s largest organisations.

The Program Launch saw a record forty four students matched with mentors from twenty four private and public organisations, including Accenture, Alcatel-Lucent, Attache-Software, Boomworks, C Smart Technologies, Deloitte, IBM, Qantas, Unilever, Woolworths, Construction Assignments, Hurstville Council, Coca Cola Amatil, Arup, John Holland, Parsons Brinckerhoff, Roads and Maritime Services, Railcorp, Siemens, Ausgrid, Hi Fraser and event host Commonwealth Bank. With an excitement akin to starting a new role or walking into their first ever university lecture, students were matched with senior professional women who will mentor them throughout the program and share their insights, life experience and expertise. 

Students were treated to an official welcome by Executive General Manager Steve McGregor, a self-confessed “Male Champion of Change” from Wealth Management IT at CBA. His welcome extended to the students chosen for the program as well as the mentors who volunteered to take part, thanking all responsible for the Lucy Program at UTS. His final words to the students, “Accept this invitation presented to you tonight – you are the generation of female talent we are proud to encourage, support and develop.”

There was a line-up of inspiring female speakers from a range of academic and corporate backgrounds. Nur Oyman, General Manager of CBA, spoke about the importance of mentoring in her career. Her golden advice to the mentees was to “be present, and have presence”, drawing on her experience of how confidence is a woman’s secret weapon in the corporate world. PhD Graduate, Minoo Masihpour, echoed the same tune. With a background in research in wireless communication networks, her academic studies gave her the confidence “never to surrender”.

The Lucy Mentoring Program is an innovative leadership program with the aim to inspire, motivate and educate young females about the opportunities available in senior corporate and public sector roles. Both mentors and mentees benefit from the mutually beneficial relationship, with Sabina Bhuiyan, Test Manager at IBM, calling it a “win-win” situation. 

Her mentee, Michelle Whye, a 4^th year Bachelor of Science in IT student, could not agree more. “I feel very privileged to be participating in the Lucy Mentoring Program. It is very encouraging to have contact with women in senior engineering and IT positions because they inspire us students to join these non-traditional female fields with confidence.”

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Sydney Geek Girl Dinner - April 2012

With a name like The Altassian and a location on Sussex Street I was expecting an upmarket bar overlooking the water, but as I was welcomed into the lower ground floor of a company which informally lists its purpose as ‘creating useful products people lust after’ and values such as ‘open company, no bullsh!t’. I was not disappointed. Pizza was lined across one wall, fridges full of drinks on another, and all around the room a group of smiling and welcoming faces affirmed that I was in the correct location.

Fresh slice of pizza in one hand, bottle of red wine in the other I mingled with the other attendees, some of which like Sarah, an auditor from Westpac, were first-timers here like me, and others like Georgie – a chirpy peroxide blonde coder, who was a veteran of the geek girl dinners.

The first speaker of the night was Paula, a psychiatrist who took a mid-career plunge into HR consulting in the sports world and was working at Altassian on a sports website (www.knowthegame.com.au) had three pieces of life advice based on sport (as she was a self-confessed sport’s nut).

• Know the game – linking this to netball she identified that we should know what position we are playing and what the rules of the game were.
• Work as a team – involving not only knowing what our roles were but that of others, likening this to rugby she highlighted the importance of communication in a business.
• Know yourself. Learn to adapt and change – linking this in with her sailing experiences she reminded us to work with the wind, know where our end goals are and read the current conditions, set a goal and work for it.

 

The next speaker was more true to the geek girl theme, Sasha Bermeister, a 3^rd year USyd student who won the Anita Borg scholarship gave us an introduction and tutorial on Markdown – a markup language that was used to create webpages, pdf’s and other documents. For those that are new to what a markup language is, she defined it as ‘a way of describing how a document looks, inside the document’, likening it to a more simple verion of other languages such as html, latex, and restructured text.

As the questions came to a close, and she urged those who were interested to contact her (at sbermeister@gmail.com).

Tonight’s Geek Girls Dinner was an informative, and informal experience that was quite enjoyable, even for someone who had the coding ability of excel, like me. There was a wide range of women and girls from all ages attending, from industry professionals, students and overseas. All the speakers were bright, passionate and clearly loved what they were doing with their lives.

Anyone who is working in the industry, or a self confessed geek is invited to attend the Geek Girls Dinner, which meet regularly and are friendly to all.

Captain Frankie – signing out!
(BEngDipEngPrac-Mechanical)

More information can be found at: www.girlgeeksydney.com

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FITT International Women's Day Luncheon

On 8 March to celebrate 101 years of International Women’s Day, eight inspiring FEIT women were sponsored by the Faculty to attend the Females in IT and Telecommunications(FITT) International Women’s Day luncheon at the beautiful Sheraton on the Park in Sydney. 

In the spirit of this year’s United Nations theme the emphasis for this event was “Connecting Girls, Inspiring Futures”. The speakers for this event were: Eva Bishop, Sr. Director, VMWare; Fiona Floyd, CIO, Suncorp; and Deborah Hadwen, CEO, Tata Consultancy Services.

The issues covered were:
Can more be done within the industry to ‘connect’ early with the next generation of female employees, managers and business owners?
To what degree does the industry champion its role models?
How can we better present the ICT industry as having an ‘inspiring future’?

The FEIT women who attended were: Anmol Gupta (BEng); Ashley Knagge (BScIT/BBus); Christine Freeburn (BEng); Jacqueline Nguyen (BIT); Jenny Nguyen (BScIT); Daisy Yuan (BEng); Kerry-Ann Chapman(BScIT); Seline Hardy (BScIT/BBus). This was a fantastic opportunity for the students to meet and network with other women working in the ICT industry.

 

We look forward to attending more FITT events in the future!

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