Programme for teen girls interested in STEAM

A non-profit organisation will provide free educational STEAM programmes for teenage girls as of September.

Girls in STEAM Academy aims to bridge the gap in the representation of women in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics) jobs. To this end, the NGO announced its new programmes for 2022 that aim to empower young girls aged 14 to 18 to pursue careers in STEAM fields.

Following the huge success of the two two-day BridgeSTEAM programmes in Limassol and Larnaca last year, Girls in STEAM Academy will hold four more BridgeSTEAM 2022 programmes.

In Nicosia, the programme will take place on September 17 and 18 at the PwC Experience Centre for girls aged 14-16, while older teenagers aged 17 to 18 can participate in the programme on October 15 to 16 in Nicosia with the venue to be announced soon.

The programme will also run at Antwork in Limassol on November 19 and 20 for 14-16 year-old girls and on December 3 and 4 in Larnaca at Youth Makerspace for girls aged 14-16.

“Despite the fact that girls outnumber boys in digital literacy, women represent only 17 per cent of people studying and working in ICT (Information and Communication Technology) fields in the EU and only 36 per cent of STEM graduates.

“This is mainly the result of gender stereotypes that prevent girls from reaching their full potential,” Girls in STEAM said.

The two-day BridgeSTEAM programme aims to empower the participants on three levels. First, by developing their skills in programming, robotics, artificial intelligence etc, and by informing them about the career opportunities that exist in STEAM industries, but also by bringing them in contact with female role models in the field of STEAM in Cyprus. The project will also offer a career guidance workshop by a recognised trainer, as well as an educational workshop on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs).

Registration for the first two programmes in Nicosia is now open at the link here or via the programme website at https://steamacademycy.org/bridgesteam/.

Applications for the September programme will be open until August 12.

Girls in STEAM Academy is an initiative of the Be an Ally Foundation, with the main sponsors of this year’s programmes being the Deputy Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy, PwC Cyprus, the Center for Social Innovation – Center for Social Innovation, and Signal Generix. The main supporters are Youth Makerspace Larnaka (Cyprus Youth Organization) and Antwork in Limassol. The initiative is led by Panagiota Polykarpou and Anastasia Liopetriti.