Women into Tech supports and encourages women studying and working in tech: apprentices (foundation / modern / graduate), students, and professionals. The project is led by Edinburgh Napier University and University of Stirling, working with Ada Scotland, and funded by Skills Development Scotland.

First, we investigated what seemed to be discouraging girls from taking tech subjects and identified some of the challenges women face in studying tech and tech careers. We found a lack of knowledge about the many diverse tech careers out there and the women progressing in these roles. We also identified some isolation issues, due to women and girls being in minorities studying computing and working in the tech industry or digital teams.

We took 3 complementary approaches to these challenges:

• Case studies of women in tech roles;
• Connect-Ups: themed online groups for women studying and working in tech in Scotland;
• Webinars led by Equate Scotland looking at ways to address the challenges of working in tech and including skills, such as peer-mentoring.