Principal Investigator Cynthia Skier
Co-investigators Tamara Broderick , Barbara J Hughey
Project Website http://wtp.mit.edu.ezproxy.canberra.edu.au/
Project Start Date July 2002
The MIT Women's Technology Program (WTP) is a rigorous four-week summer academic and residential experience where female high school students explore engineering through hands-on classes, labs, and team-based projects in the summer after 11th grade.
The goal of WTP is to spark high school girls' interest in the future study of engineering and computer science. Students attend WTP in either: Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS)or Mechanical Engineering (ME).
WTP is not a "summer camp" but an intense academic experience. Curriculum information is available on the WTP-EECS and WTP-ME sites--check these before applying to see if you have already covered our curriculum. WTP is designed for girls who have already demonstrated their ability to excel at math and science in their high school classes, but who have no prior background (or very little) in engineering or computer science. We accept students for whom our curriculum will be a new experience.
Students who have a background in computer programming (from classes or other summer programs) will not be considered for the EECS curriculum track, since the CS class is designed for students with no prior experience. (Students with CS experience may still apply to the ME curriculum track.)
Female MIT graduate students design and teach the classes, assisted by female MIT undergraduate students who also live in the dorm with the high school girls. The daily required schedule includes classes, labs, homework, and social time with other WTP students. WTP classes do not earn academic credit from MIT; WTP students are expected to work hard because they are excited about learning.
Sixty participants (40 for EECS and 20 for ME) are selected from a nationwide applicant pool of the top female 11th grade math and science students. We receive approximately 400 applications each year. Students must reside in the U.S. (or be U.S. citizens if living outside the U.S. ). We are looking for students who are not yet certain about their future college majors, and who would like to explore engineering and computer science to determine whether these fields might be of interest.