To address the imbalanced gender ratio in STEM courses, IIT-Bombay has launched an outreach program called WISE (Women in Science Engineering from Rural Parts of India). The program’s inaugural event, which will now take place annually, was recently held.
The initiative, which targets rural girls in the ninth grade, aims to offer STEM courses and includes a recurring mentorship system via which IIT Bombay student volunteers will follow up with the girls.
Between May 22 and May 26, 160 girls attending 40 schools in rural Maharashtra, Bihar, and Odisha participated in the first event at the IIT Bombay campus. The kids spent a week on campus in Hostel 15, receiving an exclusive look at IIT life.
Their demanding schedule included practical training in several of the institute’s labs. Some exercises included building various sensor and actuator circuits controlled by a basic microprocessor, creating a remote-controlled rover robot from scratch, and building a simple light bulb circuit for a complicated FM radio.
The agenda included several remarkable women in STEM sectors for interactive motivating talks. The girls also had the chance to use cutting-edge VR headgear to experience Virtual Reality (VR).
The girls learned how to solve the Rubik’s Cube from India’s best speedcubers at the end of each day. The majority of the females finished the puzzle in under five minutes. Drone construction took place during the last activity.
One of the participants, Shivstuti Sambhare, said, “I am good at mathematics. However, I was still determining how one might pursue a career in the field. I appreciate this program because it allowed me to connect with an IIT Bombay mathematics professor. She talked about how she was good at maths and ultimately chose to major in engineering. I will now take the JEE for engineering admission.
