The Barbara Cail STEM Fellowships are a highly prestigious award from the Australian Government, funded through a partnership between Chief Executive Women and the Office for Women within the Commonwealth Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Recipients will undertake research into best practice for promoting the participation of young people, particularly girls, in the STEM fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics during their education and their eventual career. The program will support an agreed research study into the practices of other OECD countries that better inform young people (school age cohort) about the importance of STEM literacy for the jobs of the future and the significantly enhanced career opportunities for STEM literate people. The research will address how industry communicates its workforce needs for the future to young people and also to the key influencers of young people, namely parents, teachers and vocational counsellors.

Only two awards are given nationally for this Fellowship Scheme, and it is a fantastic recognition of Rebecca’s work and impact in STEM and Computer Science education. Rebecca will be undertaking a series of trips across NZ, the US, the UK and Europe to talk with world leading experts on how to engage young people in Technology fields, with a particular focus on gender diversity.