Ideagen has teamed up with Nottingham Girls’ Academy to raise career prospects for women who want a career in technology as part of the ‘Ideagen Women in Tech’ programme.
Nottingham Girls’ Academy has created a careers strategy focusing on challenging gender stereotypes with the purpose on increasing the rate of girls embarking into science, technology, engineering, arts and maths (STEAM) careers.
Students will conduct cloud and collaborative computing projects, complete work experience placements and take part in ‘Internet of Everything’ coursework for a product idea. There will also be curriculum learning on the fundamentals of information technology (IT), virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technologies, a careers networking session with Ideagen professionals and chances to win prizes through a challenging technology project. The programme also includes targeted support for students at key transition points throughout their secondary and sixth form education.
The programme with Ideagen – which is part of a wider initiative involving The Futures Group, D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership, The Careers and Enterprise Company (CEC) and Greenwood Academies Trust – involves all year groups in the school. It will also provide digital tech expertise and experiences to the new T-Level qualification being delivered in the sixth form.
Ideagen’s CEO, Ben Dorks, who has been an Enterprise advisor for Nottingham City Schools since 2017, insists encouraging more women into technology careers is a personal passion. He said, “It is vitally important that we at Ideagen, as a local employer and a successful and consistently growing technology leader in the global governance, risk and compliance (GRC) space, do all we can to encourage young people – and particularly young women – into careers in technology.
“Gender stereotypes and the low uptake on technology-related studies and subsequent careers for females are well documented. However, what firms such as ourselves can do is change that through ambitious, well planned and collaborative projects such as the Ideagen Women in Tech programme.
“This subject has been a personal passion for a number of years now, and I am delighted and privileged to be in a position to encourage more women into a career in technology.
“This is a truly fantastic initiative and I am particularly pleased to be working alongside the Nottingham Girls’ Academy in bringing this project to fruition.”
The ‘Ideagen Women in Tech’ programme will see students of Nottingham Girls’ Academy take part in several sessions and projects throughout each academic year.
Jenny Saunders, careers leader at Nottingham Girls’ Academy, added, “We are excited to be part of this project as we know that future employment will involve our pupils building on their understanding of technology and its role in the workforce.
“This project enables a large cross section of our pupils to gain experience of how technology will impact their lives. Opening up discussions around career paths and helping our pupils reach their full potential is what we strive for at not just the Academy but at a Trust level.”
