Skip to main content

30 by 30


The Representation of Female Engineers in Canada

In the field of engineering, women are becoming ever so present. Unfortunately, this was not always the case. Traditionally, STEM related careers were predominantly occupied by men. Underrepresentation of women in academic spaces and in the workplace has pushed for action. In Canada, this initiative is called 30 by 30. 




Image result for engineers canada logo
Engineers Canada

Existing for over 80 years, what is now known as Engineers Canada stands as the national engineering body across Canada. The purpose of Engineers Canada is to advocate the profession of engineering, regulate the engineering practice and license the members of the engineering profession. As part of the Strategic Plan for 2019-2021, Engineers Canada plans to diversify the workplace by increasing the amount of licensed female engineers to 30% by the year 2030. This plan involves 3 major areas: recruitment, retention and professional development. 

Recruitment

We can already begin to see this change. In 2018, almost ¼ of applicants to engineering programs in Ontario were female. Programs such as Go Eng Girl and Go Code Girl involve younger students to the prospect of STEM. In 2018 alone, 1,830 female students attended these events.

Retention
Practicing female engineers in Canada are less than 14%, a staggering figure in comparison to the number of females who graduate with an engineering degree. The retention of female engineers is a target for regulators through mentorship programs, networking opportunities, improving human resource policies and hosting a variety of events.

Professional Development
Professional development involves recognizing the impact that women have contributed to the profession of engineering. It can serve as education for those stuck in their traditional mindset. Professional development also serves to provide resources for women in engineering including programs. Programs that target female professional development shows great commitment to inclusivity of women in the profession.   

As we approach the beginning of a new decade, we will begin to see some interesting
trends. Female presence in the world of STEM is increasing and quickly approaching the
30% figure. Representation of Canadians is important in all professions, and we’re glad to
see such initiatives in place!

Learn more about this initiative from Engineers Canada Strategic Direction 2019-2021

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How to Build Connections Online

by Anoushka Singhal It can be exhausting sending out cold emails or connections on LinkedIn and never getting a reply. There are many ways you can get noticed, whether it's by recruiters, CEOs, or people whose work you are generally interested in. Social networking has become very important with remote working, and many don't know where to start. Your very first step should be to create a LinkedIn profile. Personalize your LinkedIn LinkedIn is used by many professionals to recruit employees, make connections, or find mentors. It is the 'Facebook' of professionals. LinkedIn can lead to success, and it all depends on how you use it. Personalizing your LinkedIn plays a huge role in your connection requests getting accepted. Online, everyone wants to know who they are connecting with. Add a profile picture, a background image, and any achievements. Add your education, projects, languages you know, groups you are part of, volunteer experience, and basically anythi...
Post a Comment
Read more

Francesca Tsimiklis, Leaving a Legacy

by Fareen Lavji We miss her so much; we could not help but feature her again. She is one of our favourites, it’s Franny! Francesca recently, and successfully, defended her master’s thesis entitled, “Design and Validation of a Force-Sensing Piano Key to Assess Pianist Biomechanics.” Her research began with an interest in musician injury. Although playing the piano is a common activity, the physical demand of playing is often overlooked. One study found that up to 71% of professional musicians and 87% of music students experience a performance-related musculoskeletal disorder at some point in their career. Francesca’s research looked to gain an understanding of why injury rates are so high at the base level of a finger-key interaction. She developed a novel force-sensing piano key. Her integrated sensing equipment inside of a replica piano key developed a method of measuring the position and 3-axis force application on the key. Francesca is also the recipient of the 2019-20 C...
Post a Comment
Read more

This Month’s Top Story: The Artemis Program

History was made this month when 2 female astronauts, Christina Koch and Jessica Meir,  embarked on NASA’s first all-women space walk.  What is the Artemis Program? Artemis is NASA’s new lunar exploration program which plans to send the first women and next man on the Moon in 2024.  The first missions to the Moon were achieved by NASA, and landing the first man on the Moon in 1969. That program was dubbed the Apollo program. Fun Fact! If you are familiar with Greek mythology, you will know that Apollo is known as the Sun god. Artemis was Apollo’s twin sister and known as the Moon goddess.  The all-women spacewalk was set to take place months prior, in March 2019. After experiencing the spacesuit in flight (not on Earth), Christina Koch and Anne McClain came to realize that plans would have to be scrapped as the large spacesuit size was not feasible to continue the spacewalk. A proper spacesuit fit is required for astronauts to preven...
Post a Comment
Read more