Beijing & Shanghai Girls in STEMM Orientation 2023 – 2024

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Women are still outnumbered by men in STEMM! Women constitute 50% of the workforce, but only 28% of them are in STEMM jobs, and a mere 3% of STEMM industry CEOs are women.

The WEC believes women can contribute to curing cancer, developing renewable energies, and tackling climate change and with the Girls in STEMM program, WEC member companies engage young girls to show them the career options for women with STEMM degrees.

In its third year, the Girls in STEMM (GIS) program’s Orientation Day in Beijing and Shanghai welcomed students and teachers, from seven schools with women leaders and role models from diverse industries sharing their stories. 

At the orientation, Douglas K. Prescott’s, AKD Head of CISB, opening remarks inspired and encouraged young girls to break societal molds and enter historically male-dominated fields. 

During the Icebreaker activities, students were divided into five groups (Science, Technology, Engineer, Math, and Medicine) for the Quiz Session, exploring the remarkable contributions of women in STEMM throughout history and industrial knowledge, often overlooked due to social biases.

In the Interactive Round-Robin Discussions session, special guest female leaders and role models shared their unique perspectives on personal growth, career paths, and industrial experiences. Students were highly engaged and inspired by these speakers. 

As of December 2023, the GIS program has had insightful and interactive company visits at FedEx, Henkel, Audi, and Merck. Students have had face-to-face communications with women leaders as well tours of labs, factories and offices with engaging hands-on activities.  Companies have shown enthusiasm, with employees from various departments and levels volunteering to be speakers, and find it rewarding to make an impact on society and the next generation.

Eleanor Roosevelt said: “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” Young girls’ dreams are currently limited due to a lack of representation in these fields.  The WEC understands that a sustainable pipeline of capable women begins with sharing, teaching, and influencing young girls to pursue their dreams and achieve their full potential.

What students said :
“Our visit was a nice educational experience, it was fascinating to see the innovative technology and vehicles. Additionally, interaction with professionals gave me a valuable insights to life after college.”
 
“Honestly, as Audi is such a large company, I thought everyone would be forced to wear a suit and tie. I was relieved to find that at least it wasn’t the case at Audi.”
 
“I enjoyed hearing about the internship in Audi and how it is important to manage time well. I also learnt it important to be brave and ambitious when working in the STEM field as a woman.”
 
“My opinion is that I think Henkel has very relaxed atmosphere, also full of intelligent people and cool machines.”

For more information on WEC’s initiatives and GIS company visits update, stay tuned to our communications channels!