Many institutions, organizations, and employers have acknowledged the need to bring more men and women into nontraditional careers. Below are two programs selected by the NCRC’s Model Programs Subcommittee as showing promise for increasing gender diversity in nontraditional fields.
For more information about these programs and models for increasing gender diversity, contact the center.
TARGET:The Academy at Rutgers for Girls in Engineering and Technology
TARGET is a summer program designed to increase awareness in middle school and high school girls about the career opportunities available in engineering. TARGET encompasses five different one week commuter programs of 24 girls each. Through a series of hands-on activities, team challenges, speakers, and mentorships, TARGET aims to familiarize girls with different engineering disciplines and destroy negative stereotypes concerning their ability to do well in math and science.
Young Scholars Program in Discrete Mathematics
The Rutgers Young Scholars Program in Discrete Mathematics is a summer program for mathematically talented high school students. It provides a mathematically rich environment to high school students interested in mathematics, and is designed to encourage them to consider careers in the mathematical sciences. Selected students participate in an intensive four-week residential academic program that provides a challenging introduction to discrete mathematics -- a new and growing area of the mathematical sciences with many applications on the cutting edge of modern research.
PSE&G Energy Utility Technology Degree Program
In a direct effort to increase diverse talent in their pipeline, PSE&G has partnered with local high schools, vocational schools, and community colleges. Students in the program come from backgrounds which are traditionally underrepresented in these high-demand, high-skill fields, and earn a degree in their utility of choice through coursework and internships. Students are guaranteed employment in their utility upon completion of the program.
Other submissions for Model Programs included:
PSE&G Energy Utility Technology Degree Program
In a direct effort to increase diverse talent in their pipeline, PSE&G has partnered with local high schools, vocational schools, and community colleges. Students in the program come from backgrounds which are traditionally underrepresented in these high-demand, high-skill fields, and earn a degree in their utility of choice through coursework and internships. Students are guaranteed employment in their utility upon completion of the program.
Other submissions for Model Programs included:
- Reach for the Stars; Burlington County Advisory Committee on Women
- Pre-Apprenticeship Program, New Jersey Regional Council of Carpenters
- Camden County OEO/HOPE Occupational Training Center
Women make up 8.1% of Aerospace Engineers (US Department of Labor, 2002)