Донбаська державна
машинобудівна академія

GIRLS IN TECHNOLOGIES

On the eve of the International Woman's Day, CSR Ukraine, expert organization “Development Center”, in partnership with UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, under the “STEM Girls” Initiative, organized National Woman's Day in STEM on October 8 (STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics).

Thus, at the same time in all regions of Ukraine, technology companies opened their doors for 8-10th grade students and schoolgirls and inspired them to build careers in science and technology.

In Kramatorsk, the girls were told about the branch of mechanical engineering as well as about well-known women-scientists in this branch at the Donbas State Engeneering Academy. Our laboratories were visited by students of the 10th grade of the Secondary School № 8.

National Woman's Day is an event that demonstrates the benefits of building a career in technology, and aims to increase the number of girls in STEM and arouse their interest in science and technology.

Jaime Nadal, chairman of the UNFPA Ukraine Office of the United Nations Population Fund in Ukraine, gave an inspiring speech and said: “The greatest inventions in the world took place with women's participation, and it did not happen by chance. Women have creative thinking and we need to develop it from school age. I hope this event will be a good start for motivating girls to build a career in STEM. ”

The Minister of Education and Science of Ukraine Hanna Novosad, the head of the UNFPA United Nations Population Fund Jaime Nadal and the head of CSR Ukraine, the initiator of the STEM Girls project, Maryna Saprykina, came to the final discussion at the end of this important day during an online translation from Kyiv.

Head of the CIT department Dr. O.Tarasov spoke to future entrants about the benefits of computer science, the innovative technologies that students of the academy work with, showed examples of programs developed within the diploma projects, the results of cooperation of the Information Technology Department with foreign universities and an international program ERASMUS+ “BIOART”.

The girls were then able to learn about the studies at the academy from the students studying computer science. Anastasia Spyt, Elizabeth Nessen and Elena Balabolko addressed the audience, answering questions about the complexity of teaching, the variety of disciplines, students’ life, participation in competitions, international student programs and many others. After the event, the young trainees invited teachers and students to share information about studies at the academy with students of School No. 22. The departments of СIT, ESA, KMSIT responded the girls’ request and fulfilled it.

Assistant of the department A. Kovalenko spoke about projects developed within ERASMUS + «BIOART» project. Students Anastasia Trusova, Yulia Solod and Anastasia Shpyt made presentations for schools as representatives of the department of information technologies, which, by their own example, refute gender stereotypes related to "male" and "female" professions.