Girls coding and building new network at IT-Camp

- The best thing about IT-Camp was the cake, haha. But other than that, it was being with other girls who have the same interests as me. It's usually always boys who have the same interests as me, she says.

For the organisers at TEK, this kind of feedback from participants means they've hit the nail on the head.

- When several participants mention that it has been great to be with other women who have the same interests as themselves - because they are used to it usually being boys or men who are into IT, software, etc. - then the camp has lived up to its goal. This is precisely the sense of community we want to achieve with our women-focused events. And I hope that this feeling and this community can contribute to more women choosing to study a technical subject, says Mette Qvarfot, Communications Officer at the Faculty of Technology.

The weekend offered a lot of professional exercises and tasks, e.g. the participants also got to know computer vision and artificial intelligence, but the event also focused on social things. At the same time, participants were also introduced to the facilities and sencec of SDU and exposed to a quiz about fun facts about SDU.  

Social gathering

Things that meant a lot to 18-year-old Lina Langemark from Roskilde, who is currently studying HTX.

- It's been great. I was here to get an impression of the place, and that's what I got. It's great that there's a lot of focus on social issues at SDU. It's been exciting subjects, I want to study robotics engineering, she says.

If you'd like to attend the next IT-Camp or join one of our upcoming Go Get IT Girls events - we've held the first one - you'll get a feel for both coding and the opportunities that engineering degrees open up. It works, says Helena Mouritzen from Roskilde.

- It's been really good to get input on what you can do after graduation. I had no idea that you could end up working with UX design, says 30-year-old Helena Mouritsen.

In addition to IT-Camp, TEK is behind the Go Get IT Girls campaign, which also focuses on showcasing the world of IT and STEM to girls. In general, TEK is constantly working on getting more women to choose to engineer, says Henning Andersen, Director of Education.

Diversity equals better solutions

- At the Faculty of Technology, we have a strong focus on diversity - not least on getting more women to join our engineering programs. Both girls and boys become equally good engineers with an education at the Faculty of Technology. Still, a higher proportion of girls and women in education and companies would clearly be desirable. It will both be because more engineers can then be educated and because increased diversity will help create better and more creative solutions to the challenges of the future.

For coordinator Mette Qvarfot, the ultimate goal is of course to have the girls return as students at TEK, and she hopes they have brought home a positive and educational experience with IT. 

But another important goal is to introduce them to female role models and cool IT women who show the way for women into the profession, she stresses.

- It's important that they have the opportunity to meet students and graduates from the IT industry so that they are made more aware of the many possible fields of work that an IT education can lead to. This year, we had  cool IT women from LEGO and Hesehus stopping by the camp, where participants were also taught by two of our own female researchers working in software and robotics.

TEK has been organizing IT-Camp for Girls since 2018, and if you're interested in being part of the next camp, set aside some time in February 2023, when we expect to stack up the next event.