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International Women’s Day (IWD) celebrates the achievements of women and marks a call to action for accelerating women’s equality.

The IWD campaign theme this year is #InspireInclusion, encouraging people to understand and value women’s inclusion, as well as inspire women themselves to be included and feel empowered. At 51������, we are passionate about uplifting and celebrating the achievements of women, and inspiring inclusion in the world of health data science.

“I’m a work in progress but what I’ve experienced is that the more I failed, the easier it got to become successful in what I was doing. So, fail as much as you can. Trying is okay, and failing is even better because you realise what you need to do to succeed.”

 

Ester Bellavia, Patient and Public Involvement Officer at 51������

Hear from incredible women who are passionate about inspiring inclusion

How can we inspire more women to pursue a career in this field?

At our 51������ Conference this week in Leeds, we asked our attendees “This Friday is International Women’s Day. How do you think we can we inspire more women to pursue a career in tech and data science?”.

Here’s what they said!

“By providing more internships and learning opportunities to young women who might not have enough experience in this area, but are motivated and interested in starting their career.”

 

“Need to think from the start – what GCSEs and A levels and degrees are students taking and why? Think about STEAM (integrating and embedding arts into STEM).”

 

“Retention of existing talented women in STEM careers/studies is key – effective mentorship, a safe and supportive work environment, and flexible & hybrid working options (inc. part time).”

 

“Have more women in senior roles.”

 

“Understand what holds women back. This is still a big issue with having to prove ourselves more than men, or not being trusted in the same way as men. It holds back experience, promotion and entry into male-dominated disciplines.”

 

“Actively discourage brogrammer culture and weeding out toxic individuals.”

 

“Develop bridging programmes to attract arts graduates into STEM careers (the private sector have proved that good arts graduates convert quickly and effectively to e.g. software/technology careers.).”

 

“Equal opportunities, equal pay and respect for families.”

 

“Remote workplaces, good maternity package, hybrid/flexible policies. These things have been proven to support and improve numbers of women at work. It’s simple!”