Dundalk IT and I WISH host inaugural event for female Transitional Year students
I WISH is an initiative to encourage young female students to pursue careers in STEM
Dundalk Institute of Technology (DkIT) says it was delighted to recently host a high energy event for almost 100 young female Transitional Year (TY) students in conjunction with I WISH.
The Institute says it was delighted to announce its newly formed partnership with I WISH at this event and was "thrilled" when Sharon Lombard, Director of I WISH, took to the stage to introduce all things Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) to the attending TY students.
I WISH is an initiative to inspire, encourage and motivate young female students to pursue careers in STEM. This organisation originated in 2015, with 1,000 female TY students attending the Cork City Hall.
Now I WISH has grown nationally, bringing the showcase to the RDS in Dublin. To date I WISH has reached out to over 50,000 students and have further ambitious goals to continue to increase their student reach through their annual showcase events and their campus programmes with other higher education institutes such as Trinity, UCD, UL, UCC, MTU to name but a few.
STEM is the fastest growing and most in demand sector in Ireland, but recent research undertaken by I WISH reported that 57% of girls lack confidence in their ability to pursue a STEM career, 66% of girls see lack of information about STEM careers as a barrier to pursuing a career in STEM, with 84% of girls wanting to know more about STEM.
But on a positive note, 93% reject the stereotype that STEM careers are more suited to boys than girls. This new collaboration between the “DkIT Loves STEM” team with I WISH is the perfect partnership for the Institute to continue to address this.
This year the DkIT STEM team visited schools in the region including Sacred Heart Drogheda, St Vincents Dundalk, St Louis Dundalk and Greenhills Drogheda.
The aim of this roadshow was to address the current barriers to STEM for females by hosting talks which shared expert females experience of STEM industries. The schools were then invited to send TY students interested in learning more to DkIT/I WISH campus day for a taster of all things STEM.
DkIT says it was "absolutely delighted" to hold this recent event with I WISH which facilitated almost 100 students. On the day students got to experience interactive sessions with academics and DkIT students, completing Microbiology Labs, Virtual Labs, Programming and Coding, Engineering activities, a tour of DkIT’s Film Studio’s all whilst getting a feel of what student life in DkIT could look like for them.
Next year students from the region will also attend the I WISH Showcase event in the RDS, hearing from some of Irelands most incredible and inspiring STEM Role models and interacting with STEM industry.
The Institute says it is particularly excited with all things STEM, as this year it is on track to open its new state of the art 1,300 sqm Science extension. This extension is part of an important capital investment in DkIT which will allow the Institute to transform its existing facilities into a STEM centre of excellence within the northeast.
The “DkIT Loves STEM” team says it would also like to thank Lavina McGahon from THRIVE at DkIT who supported the spot prizes on the day which included a pair of Apple Airpods, five Mojo & Co Planner Journals and four Soilse Candles from local businesses.