Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day

Since 2002, Nitsch Engineering has been hosting an annual Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day for 6th to 12th grade girls. Each year we aim to:

increase girls’ interest in engineering in a supportive and enthusiastic atmosphere.
educate them about the various engineering fields by showcasing different types of engineering each year.
share information about how rewarding a career in engineering can be.
introduce the girls to women engineers.
demonstrate that engineering is fun!

Each year we choose a specific field of engineering as a topic, and develop a program that combines female engineers’ stories with hands-on activities to educate and inspire the girls. Past topics have included:

2023 – Connecting Communities with Transportation Engineering
2022 – Virtual River Clean-Up
2021 – Virtual Panel Discussion
2020 – Virtual Engineering Fair
2019 – Fight Climate Change: Engineering a Resilient Future
2018 – Sharing Resources, Building Communities: Engineering Around the World
2017 – Now Hear This: Acoustical Engineering Improves Daily Life!
2016 – Computer Engineering Makes an Impact!
2015 – Improving Life with Biomedical Engineering!
2014 – Get Your Feet Wet: Learn About Marine & Ocean Engineering!
2013 – Engineering for Cell Phones
2012 – Engineering for Schools
2011 – Improving the World With Robotics
2010 – Get Excited About Green Energy!
2009 – Designing and Building Bridges for the World
2008 – Saving the World One Drop of Water at a Time
2007 – Experience Bioengineering

Resources

Visit the following websites to learn more about pursuing an engineering education and career!

Engineer Girl: This website shares the exciting opportunities that engineering represents for girls and women. Bright, energetic girls from all around United States and Canada helped develop this site by serving as the Advisory Board.
Engineering – Go For It: Check out this site to find descriptions of different engineering fields, get information on how to prepare yourself for an engineering education, and learn how to choose the right college for you.
Try Engineering: This interactive site gives you a chance to explore science and engineering with virtual visits, activities, and design challenges.
SWENext: This program from the Society of Women Engineers is focused on providing girls younger than 18 with a way to #BeThatEngineer!
PBS Design Squad Nation: Design Squad Nation includes tons of articles, activities, and challenges to put your engineering and design skills to the test!
Discover-e: This site, from the National Engineers Week Foundation, connects you with engineering-related resources including career outlook, activities, and other resources.
Tomorrow’s Engineers: This site from the UK has great information on engineering. While some information is UK-specific, there is a lot to explore!
Smore Magazine: Smore is a science magazine for 7-12 year old girls that covers interesting research news, STEM activities, and stories of women in STEM.
IT Hare: This website, which is focused on computer engineering and software programming, includes a great list of major engineering fields with short introductions and links to more information. Thanks to Zoe, a future engineer, for recommending we add this resource!

Explore Different Types of Engineering

There are many different types of engineering that students can pursue! The websites below provide brief introductions to different fields of engineering.

Similar Events

There are a number of organizations that sponsor programs similar to our event. We’d suggest taking a look at these if you’re interested in other events!

Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day: The official site for the national event includes information on activities, events, and competitions.
Girl Scouts of Eastern Massachusetts: Check out a number of STEM-focused events, including the annual “Changing the World Through STEM” event; girls do not always need to be a Girl Scout to attend.
Girl Scouts of Central and Western Massachusetts: The Geek is Glam STEM Expo in October is a great opportunity for 4th to 8th grade girls to get hands-on experiences with STEM fields.
Cambridge Science Festival: The Cambridge Science Festival offers a wide range of STEM-related activities – lectures, debates, exhibitions, concerts, plays, workshops, etc. – over ten days at a variety of locations in Massachusetts.
Boston Area Girls’ STEM Collaborative: Great collaboration between a number of organizations to advocate for girls’ participation in STEM fields. Hosts a number of events, including summer activities, for girls in middle and high school. SET in the City, an event for high-school girls, is held every spring. Tech Savvy, an event for middle-school girls, is held each summer.
USA Science and Engineering Festival: Check out the largest science festival in the United States, which features nationwide contests and school programs.
Society of Women Engineers Boston: SWE Boston hosts a number of other K-12 Outreach events.
Northeastern University, Center for STEM Education: Throughout the year, Northeastern’s Center for STEM Education hosts multiple events for girls of all ages who are interested in STEM fields. All are either free or very low cost.
Worcester Polytechnic Institute Pre-College Programs: WPI holds a variety of outreach events for students from 3rd – 12th grade, including programs during the school year and summer.
UMass Lowell, Francis College of Engineering Community Outreach: UMass Lowell runs a series of events for students interested in engineering, including ones targeted specifically for female students.
CodeCampKidz: This user-friendly eLearning platform was designed to introduce coding to kids in an achievable and fun way! Many people are moving onto elearning platforms, with tips and tricks to help people transition into this available online (source here). In addition to the eLearning platform, they host events around New England.

*Society of Women Engineers, Research and Trends for Women in STEM, Employment Research