Parents and high school guidance counsellors continue to dissuade girls from applied science careers, says Mamdouh Shoukri, dean of the faculty of engineering at McMaster University in Hamilton. I think we need to build more links to high schools to overcome these stereotypes. The show uses a mix of video, live experiments and talks by faculty and local engineering alumni to explain what applied science is about and how it can have an impact on society. The faculty also sponsors an engineering day camp during the summer for Grades 7 to 9 students. Fifty percent of campers are girls.
Youngsters spend each week-long session on projects that require engineering skills.
Other sessions have involved designing and building catapults, and competitions to determine which groups shoot furthest. It is very difficult to assess the impact of the camp, because last year was the first year where the students who had participated would be ready to go to university, and they may not go to McMaster. Female undergrads also seem attracted to McMaster's Engineering in Society program, where students select an engineering specialty and take five years to complete the degree instead of the usual four. Engineering studies are supplemented with compulsory courses on critical thinking and environmental impact, along with liberal arts electives such as political science and religious studies. Shoukri says the program produces more well-rounded students and women have made up half the two graduating classes so far.