SheBiz Calgary Highlights Many Career Options for Young Women
We learn about an event that encourages young women to pursue careers in business, science, technology engineering and math.
Read moreAs many as 200 young women will get a chance to peer into their own futures on Friday as St. Margaret's School in Saanich plays host to SheBiz, a day-long program designed to expand the horizon for promising young students
According to Tamara Bonn, co-chair of WCM Victoria's steering committee, the day will feature the stories and insights of business professionals, entrepreneurs and women in the technology sector. The hope is that it will open the eyes of young students to what is available to them beyond the traditional courses of study in university.
"Studies have shown that while young girls have really strong skill sets in STEM [science, technology, engineering and math], the reality is they are not going into those fields in university," said Bonn, portfolio manager at TD Wealth. "One of the problems is they may not have female role models, or mentorship, to illustrate what a real-life career would look like for them.
"We want to make sure their eyes are open to the various options. And the skill sets women have are so desirable in our world right now, but it still seems like there are huge barriers for them."
The event will run at St. Margaret's for young women in Grades 10 and 11 from 10 area high schools. There will be presentations from accomplished women from a wide variety of businesses, many of which might not have been on the radar for these students.