This Article is From Oct 08, 2020

Bridging Industry With Classrooms For Women In Tech

IBM has joined hands with Aspire For Her Foundation to help young Indian girls acquire the 360 degree knowledge and skill to make a seamless transition from classrooms to professional pitch in their tech careers.

Bridging Industry With Classrooms For Women In Tech

Bridging Industry With Classrooms For Women In Tech

As businesses open up post the Coronavirus pandemic, there is an increasing need to think smart and think 360 degree. IBM has joined hands with Aspire For Her Foundation to help young Indian girls acquire the 360 degree knowledge and skill to make a seamless transition from classrooms to professional pitch in their tech careers.

18 year old Sneha Ganesh, a First Year student has just completed the IBM's Open P-tech programme and is excited about the opportunities it offers. Sneha says, ”Such an amazing course! As the name suggests, the course was completely suited for anyone who is a beginner. It was very easy to grasp the concepts as they were taught in a visual manner with many real world examples. Not to mention the opportunity that was offered to chat with one of the world's best AI powered chatbots!

I love the Open P Tech platform and can't wait to explore many more courses and earn several badges!”

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To girls like Sneha, who are aspiring to make a career in Data Science, this allows to add digital badges to their resume, that point to tangible learning. They are learning at their own pace, own time and beyond their classrooms.

This is a CSR initiative of IBM in India and they have partnered with Aspire For Her foundation, that was launched on Women's Day 2020 ‘to motivate young women pursue amazing careers,' says Madhura Dasgupta Sinha, the founder, a banker turned social entrepreneur.

The lockdown began soon after its launch but that did not hinder the growth of this community that now has over 15,000 strong members. There has been a surge of support from Corporates, institutions and individuals for these women.

Madhura says,” All of us at Aspire For Her are excited to launch this learning partnership with IBM's Open P Tech platform.

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India lags behind in the Global Gender Gap index, as women do not enter the workforce or drop out early. Aspire For Her wants to change this story. The mission of Aspire For Her is to motivate young women to pursue amazing careers, we want to build a community of more than a million women to unleash the hidden power in the economy of our country.”

IBM is helping this community of women to come close to their dream tech careers.

Research shows that there is a low participation of women in STEM and STEM related roles (Science, Tech, Engineering and Maths). To change that is the aim of both IBM and Aspire For Her.

The course is free for the Aspire For Her members and supporters - ones who sign up on the platform. It is a global platform where they connect with Open P-Tech students across the globe.

While girls acquire knowledge through this programme and become industry ready, Aspire For Her provides opportunities to connect with great organisations looking to hire diverse talent.

Madhura says,” We are building winning mindsets - through career resources like mentors, role models, career previews and of course, through world-class learning opportunities like IBM's Open P Tech - which will take our members one step closer to their dream careers. With forward looking partners like IBM, we are certain that we will be able to attract more women in technology and bridge the gap between their aspirations and action. With many more exciting partnerships and alliances coming up, we are just getting started.”

Jayita Gupta, who pursued a course in Artificial Intelligence says, “The quality of content is beyond amazing! The course got me so hooked that I can't stop myself from going to the next chapter to see what's in store for me, I am absolutely loving it!”

Yashasvi Ghadale's Quantum Computing lessons with Open P-Tech has taken her close to a dream career. She says,” Quantum Computing is something that I was deeply intrigued about since I first heard about it. With Learning@ASPIRE and IBM Open P-Tech, I was able to learn the science behind Quantum Computing and also explore what opportunities a career in this field holds!”

So why did IBM decide to partner with AFH on this journey?

Rumi Mallick Mitra, Leader, Strategy and New Initiatives for IBM Social Responsibility, India, says, “There is an urgent need for young learners to develop relevant skills that will help them to be successful in the job market. As a leading technology company, we believe this is not only a huge opportunity but also a responsibility that we have, and hence with Open PTECH we are striving to boost skillsets of young learners and provide a way to jump-start their careers.

The courses made available on Open PTECH like cybersecurity, blockchain, design thinking, AI and machine learning are critical 21st century skills for the digital era.

Through Open PTECH we ensure that access to these specialized courses are democratised and available freely. At IBM, we have a strong focus to enable and support women for success in life and STEM careers and ensuring this will contribute to our nation's success also.

Through Aspire For Her, and with its stellar network of industry experts and mentors, we hope to be a part of the journey that can help these girls and young women to pursue their dreams.”

Just the help women in STEM need to leap to the careers they aspire for!

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