PhD student spreading the support for women across ANU

A mentoring group for female engineering students established by the 2017 Young ACT Woman of the Year is being expanded to include other subjects.

Francesca Maclean is a PhD candidate from the ANU College of Engineering and Computer Sciences who is keen to help students enrolled in all STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) achieve their career goals.

"In my five year degree at ANU I had three female lecturers and only one was in Engineering," Francesca said.

"So I really noticed during my PhD that I needed a mentor and I didn't have anyone that was really suitable in my home environment."

By the end of next year Francesca will have established a mentoring program across all STEM related Colleges to help support students through their studies and assist them to make linkages with business and industry.

In 2015 Francesca and fellow student Emily Campbell founded the group Fifty50, using an inclusive approach to both genders in the discussion of gender equity and STEM.

"Our vision is to have an equitable and inclusive pipeline from university to industry or academia regardless of gender," she said.

"We run mentoring programs and we advocate for structural change in the University.

"We receive funding to run a cultural audit amongst the undergraduate student population which we hope will lead to few changes in the colleges," she said.

Francesca says shifting cultural beliefs remains the biggest barrier more broadly, with the issue impacting not just female but male students as well.

Although Fifty50 was set up to support female STEM students, Francesca says it is open to anyone across the University.

"It is really different in the different disciplines, but if you look at something that's common across the board, it's the availability of female role models and females in leadership positions," she said.

For young female students who are looking for more support and are interested in finding out more about fifty50, visit ANUfifty50.com or their facebook page, ANUfifty50STEM.