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A ground-breaking new initiative, Smarter Placement for Women Programme, is aimed at encouraging more women to pursue STEM careers. Photo: iStock

Denis Collins, chairman of the Board of it@cork European Tech Cluster, challenged industry leaders with collectively providing 100 work placements for young female Transition Year students for the 2014/2015 school year. In a bold move, the IT leader pressed business leaders to make the commitment at the European Tech Summit this week.

The ground-breaking new initiative, Smarter Placement for Women Programme, is aimed at encouraging more women to pursue science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) careers by supporting them in work placement opportunities. The programme hopes to stimulate their interest in technology as a potential career option and to influence their subject choices at 2nd and 3rd level.

Work placement is a key element of most transition year programmes while sourcing the placement is often the responsibility of the student. ICT companies typically see fewer work placement applications from young female students than their male equivalents. This initiative aims to facilitate equal opportunity work placements.

DESIGNED BY WOMEN

"With over 4,500 ICT jobs currently unfilled in Ireland, women must be part of the solution. Many studies have shown that female participation in ICT remains low. The Smarter Placement programme is designed by women who have 'been there, done that' for young women to guide them towards an exciting and rewarding career in technology. It is very encouraging to see the number of Cork companies who have embraced this initiative,“ said Caroline O' Driscoll, Partner KPMG, it@cork Board Director and founder of the Smarter Placement programme.

Recent studies have also shown that employers are increasingly considering work placements as another element of the recruitment process and that there can be a ‘considerable difference’ between those who have done work placement and those who have not. Even placements as short as one week in duration can significantly enhance the employability of the student when they complete their educational studies. These are just some of the reasons the industry leaders at the it@cork European Tech Summit welcomed the initiative and why many have already signed up to playing their part in the new initiative.

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