This year I had the honor of receiving scholarships to attend two of the biggest women in engineering and women in technology conferences. Grace Hopper Celebration for Women in Computing is the biggest conference for women in technology. Here women from all over the world from various backgrounds gather to support and celebrate each other. GHC is a truly empowering experience. The celebration spans 3 days and its main attractions are the keynote speakers and a huge career fair. The conference hosts a variety of panels and workshops on topics like leadership, management, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, cloud computing, etc. It also provides funding and recognition to women-led startups that are aimed at making a difference in this world.  This year’s conference was held at Houston, Texas between 26th September to 28th September 2018.

There is a number of scholarships and travel grants available that either completely covers or aid in covering the conference expenses. I was awarded the Anitab.org GHC scholarship which covered all of my conference expenses. The application for this Scholarship opens around February-March. It requires you to fill out an application, answer a few questions about your experiences as a woman in technology, submit your resume and a letter of recommendation.

The Society of Women Engineers’ WE 18 conference is one of the largest conferences for Women in Engineering. This year’s conference will be held in Minneapolis, Minnesota between 18th October to 20th October 2018. WE 18 is an excellent opportunity to meet the diverse women in engineering and learn from their experiences. It is attended by students, faculty, professionals and offers a number of workshops and seminars about the latest developments in the various engineering disciplines. This conference provides a much wider spectrum of exposure. It is an excellent opportunity if working across disciplines excites you! WE18 also boasts of a humongous career fair and excellent keynote speakers.

I was awarded the Google Travel and Conference Grant to attend WE 18. This Grant covers my traveling and housing expenses. The applications for this Grant open around June-July and they generally get back to you around a month before the conference.

Both of these conferences are hubs of tremendous opportunities to learn, grow and explore new career trajectories. The best part is the opportunity to connect with revolutionary women and get inspired by their stories. These success stories encourage us all to be proud WOMEN IN STEM!