Women in STEM Education (WiSE) Program

The Women in STEM Education (WiSE) Program supports the career development of identifying women studying in the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) at Western Sydney University.

In 2023, there are positive trends in girl's and women's engagement with STEM, with increased higher enrolment in STEM subjects, and growth in women pursuing STEM courses and occupations. Women in university STEM courses increased by 31% from 2015 to 2021, but they constitute only 37% of enrolments. Despite some of our progress, only 15% of STEM jobs are held by women.

Source: Industry.gov.au

The major barriers faced by identifying-women include: low confidence, limited representation in specific STEM classes, and underrepresentation in senior and leadership roles.

That’s where WiSE comes in, the WiSE Program aims to reshape the STEM workforce through building empowering networks of identifying-women and offer a range of activities and initiatives to those who are enrolled at Western Sydney University through:

Employer Visits

Students are given the chance to tour a STEM workplace related to their degree and receive firsthand insight on what a day in their chosen field looks like. Students will hear from graduate staff and other representatives from the company as well as learn more about the industry.

Exclusive Access to Resources

As a female-identifying student enrolled in a STEM course, you have free and automatic access to the CareerHub – WiSE Site. Through there, you can register for all WiSE initiatives and access the new and improved WiSE Compass, an online tool with a set of activities designed to help you identify your career strengths and build new skills.