7 of the Best Scholarships for Women in Tech

2022’s Stack Overflow’s Developer Survey is out and the demographic results are not shocking. 93% of professional developers identify as men. The leftover 7% are comprised of women, non-binary people and gender-diverse individuals. This is recent data and yet this is a disparity that we know all too well. 

Research from Forbes emphasises how diversity in tech is more than just a necessity, it genuinely improves businesses. Gender diverse businesses have higher productivity levels, employee satisfaction and allow for innovative and creative thinking. The economic growth also cannot be discounted. As the need for professionals grows, women in tech are securing leadership roles with long-term stability.

Fortunately we are not alone in wanting to conquer this imbalance. More and more we are seeing companies offering educational programs to turn this trend around and open up the floor for diverse voices. 

We have seen the success of tech initiatives for women and non binary people first hand. Code Like a Girl’s recent scholarship intake received over a whopping 100+ applications, ranging from 18 to 55+ years old. Our goal is to reduce the employment gap in the tech industry, through our School of Code online courses and by offering scholarship opportunities throughout the year. Want to find out about our next scholarship round? Keep up with us on socials and sign up to our newsletter. 

We’ve done the research to find out some other amazing technology scholarships and training programs on offer to help launch your career in tech. 

Google Career Certificates 

The Google Career Certificates are the latest innovation from Google, set out to provide current job-seekers knowledge and training of the most in-demand tech skills. Taught by Google employees and industry professionals themselves, the content of these courses varies from data analytics, digital marketing, UX design and more. Not only are these certificates alone great resources for prospective employers wanting to reskill, Google is funding a whopping 130,000 scholarships to be distributed through their not-for-profit partners. 

This scholarship puts diversity and inclusion at the forefront, with 59% of previous scholarship alumni not having prior formal qualifications and 38% coming from the lowest income percentile. This aligns with our commitment to continue making tech education and content accessible to all learners. To have such a large organisation like Google champion diversity in the scholarship application process carries so much significance in the tech disparity debate. 

Interested? Google is offering our CLG community a chance to earn a scholarship in one of their certificates. Find out more and apply here.

She Returns

Coming back to full-time employment after a leave of absence can be confronting. Whether it is returning from parental leave, illness or a career change, The Dream Collective’s She Returns program is supporting women in this step forward. Through webinars and community networks, She Returns offers a space to share advice, accompaniments and opportunities in navigating getting back into the workforce.

The Dream Collective also has other great initiatives for women including the She Pivots and She Dares. Both are 4-part digital programs created to demystify careers in STEM for women. Through modules, learners are shown the ease of reskilling and upskilling all while taking inspiration from current leaders and professionals. 

ANZ’S Return to Work

Another program for transitioning back into the workforce is ANZ’s Return to Work program. This initiative aims to make this adjustment easier by offering placements in the ANZ tech division. The program, which was initially for Melbourne workers, has recently expanded to include Bengaluru, Auckland and Wellington. This expansion is excellent in allowing more people in the information technology landscape to thrive.  

AWS Machine Learning Engineer Scholarship Program

Career advancement and upskilling are two of the main benefits of AWS’s Machine Learning Engineer Scholarship Program. The program, which is in collaboration with Girls in Tech and the National Society of Black Engineers, has been created specifically to give space to underrepresented groups by offering machine learning and nanodegree school scholarships.

The Hacking School - Women In Tech Scholarship

Something that we can really rally behind is increasing the number of women in coding roles. That is why we are so in awe of The Hacking School and their initiatives. They provide scholarships of up to $3000 to women interested in pursuing full stack web development courses. As coders ourselves we know the importance of getting more women at the table so we are big supporters of any tech scholarships that take on this issue. 

Elevate Scholarship from the ATSE

The Australian Academy of Technological Sciences & Engineering’s Elevate Scholarship awards up to 500 scholarships  to women studying STEM in an undergraduate or postgraduate capacity. This scholarship accomplishes exactly what we are trying to achieve, by increasing the numbers of women and gender-diverse students who will then go onto pursue long term careers in the industry. Scholars also receive more than just a financial contribution to their studies, there are also opportunities for professional development, mentoring and networking throughout the program. 

CareerTrackers

Increasing diversity in the corporate world is a constant goal of ours. CareerTrackers accomplishes this by linking Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students with paid internships at organisations like IAG, Macquarie and more. Over 80% of participants secure long-term employment with these companies upon completion. The work CareerTrackers does is so important in providing safe spaces for Indigenous youth to network and gain professional support.