Northern Regional College celebrates women in STEM

  • Northern Regional College (NRC) have been hosting a series of events over the last week (9 – 13 March) to mark International Women’s Day and their involvement in an international ‘Women in STEM’ project.

    Women in STEM (W-STEM) is a £1m international project aimed at promoting science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) subjects to women in higher education, primarily in South American universities.

    NRC is one of the lead partners in the project and the only further education college among the fifteen partners, which include universities in Chile, Finland and Spain.

    Ruth Walker, engineering lecturer at NRC said: “As a college we want to promote equality within the subject areas of STEM.

    “This was an opportunity to brainstorm for ideas on promoting STEM courses and to share their expertise and success in attracting females to their respective subject areas with their colleagues.”

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    On Monday the college hosted an informal gathering of female STEM staff in the business engagement room at its Newtownabbey campus.

    On Tuesday Paula O’Connell, senior learning and development specialist with Sensata Technologies spoke to engineering students about apprenticeship opportunities within the firm, joined by a former NRC student who recently completed her apprenticeship with the business.

    On Thursday 12 March, Year 10 pupils from local post-primary schools will go head-to-head at the annual Schools’ Technology Tournament.

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    Professor Terri Scott, principal and chief executive of NRC said: “Our vision is to be an outstanding provider of training and education focussed on the needs of society and the modern economy and one of the College’s key values to promote respect.

    “An equal world is an enabled world and by working together, we can work challenge stereotypes and achieve equality.”

     “These events are designed to highlight the importance of STEM subjects to a wider audience and are part of the College’s overall strategy to equip students with the skills need to compete successfully in the global workplace and meet the needs of local employers.”

    About the author

    Niamh is a Sync NI writer with a previous background of working in FinTech and financial crime. She has a special interest in sports and emerging technologies. To connect with Niamh, feel free to send her an email or connect on Twitter.

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