Challenging the stigma surrounding women in STEM

Challenging the stigma surrounding women in STEM

RMIT University Bachelor of Information Technology student Nguyen Thu Hang is working hard to inspire women and girls to pursue a career in a traditionally male-dominated industry - science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

news-thumbnail-challenging-the-stigma-surrounding-women-in-stem Bachelor of Information Technology student Nguyen Thu Hang is one of RMIT’s Academic Achievement Scholarship recipients in 2020, and AmCham Women in Engineering Scholarship winners.

After graduating from a business program and working full time for four years, Hang decided to make a fresh start in technology and chose RMIT as her new educational destination.

“I previously worked for a startup and was interested in the developers’ work,” Hang recalled. “The idea of starting all over again in a traditionally male-dominated industry held me back and made me question myself.

“The encouragement from a close friend of mine nudged me to make the call and here I am.”

Now halfway through her degree, Hang believes her time at RMIT is preparing her well for a future career in STEM.

“There were obviously ups and downs, obstacles, and uncertainties when beginning in a new area,” Hang shared.

“But what I realised was my challenges were not unusual nor gender specific. We all faced similar obstacles and had to learn how to cope with them effectively in order to produce the best possible outcomes.”

Hang was one of RMIT’s Academic Achievement Scholarship recipients for current students at the end of last year, with a GPA of 3.8.

“With a concise and practical curriculum, I learnt a lot in a short period of time and was able to build my portfolio, even from the first semester,” she said.

“While doing group work or individual assignments, the female students in our cohort contributed in a unique way to help achieve positive outcomes.”

Hang was one of 70 recipients from 265 applications of the 2020 AmCham Women in Engineering Scholarship, which aims to encourage and support female students to study and pursue careers in STEM.

“I was so thrilled and can’t wait to emerge in a network of like-minded people in the field,” Hang said.

As she continues her studies at RMIT, Hang is also focused on building her own citation website, improving her coding, and developing a blog to share her knowledge and approaches in certain technological projects.

“I want to provide a more user-friendly and efficient platform for students who need to include a lot of references in their assignments just like I do,” Hang said.

RMIT University’s Bachelor of Information Technology and Bachelor of Engineering (Software Engineering) Senior Program Manager Dr Duy Dang-Pham said it was encouraging to see the number of women in STEM increasing.

“There’s a misconception in IT and software engineering fields that they’re only suitable for males, and it’s not true,” Dr Dang-Pham said.

“As long as you enjoy working with technology, and have logical thinking and problem solving skills, you will definitely be successful in the field regardless of your gender.”

Story: Ha Hoang

  • Engineering

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