Qualcomm and IIE Expand Summer Program to Build K-12 Pipeline of Girls in Tech

This summer, thirty middle school girls will graduate from Qcamp for Girls in STEM, developed and implemented by Qualcomm Incorporated and the Institute of International Education (IIE).

This year marks the third year of Qcamp for Girls, a two-week, free-of-charge intensive summer camp designed to introduce and solidify middle school students’ interest in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). Following the success of the first cohort of students, Qualcomm and IIE will expand Qcamp for Girls to include a new class of sixth grade girls in July, as well as launch Qcamp for Kids in STEM, a new one-week, co-ed program for sixth graders, both girls and boys, in August.

The two new Qcamps will connect 60 students from the Vista Unified School District – home to more than 6,000 students, many who are learning English as a second language – with a range of first-hand engineering experiences that give campers insight into how technology is used in our everyday world. Campers will also engage in practices such as team problem-solving, communication, prototyping, documentation, and presentation. The initiative is a high-touch, on-going program designed to develop long-term interest in technology and a support network for young girls and now boys as well. To keep students interested and connected after the Qcamps, Qualcomm and IIE will invite campers to participate in related activities throughout the year, including mentoring opportunities, hackathons, and tinkering events. Campers will also be encouraged to serve as engineering ambassadors at their schools, and will influence many other students with new skills and ideas about technology.
 
Qcamp for Girls was launched in 2014 for incoming sixth grade girls from San Diego Unified School District in California; all thirty students will graduate this August.  Qcamp students meet and engage with professional engineers, learn about engineering tools and their applications, explore the engineering design process, build their own projects, and meet new friends inside the Qualcomm® Thinkabit Lab™ at the Company’s headquarters in San Diego. Qcamp features fun-filled content with a strong emphasis on engineering, teaching campers how technologies such as robots, apps, and wireless control play a role in our world. At each camp, students will work in teams to build hands-on projects that combine science and art, build their knowledge and skills in engineering, coding and using mobile devices as tools, keep a scrapbook and write reflections.
 
The University of California, Berkeley has been involved since the beginning of the program, conducting a longitudinal study on the impact of the programs.  The preliminary results have shown that Qcamp has increased the participants’  intent to include STEM in their lives at home and in school; it has developed awareness and interest in STEM careers, and increased and sustained high levels of the dispositions, skills and knowledge that enable success in STEM learning
 
“I hope that I get all that skills that I need to be an engineer to make the world a better place for animals, people, and plants,” said a 2015 camper who will be among the 90 students who will participate in three separate Qcamps this summer.
 
“It’s probably the best camp I’ve been to. I like how it’s hands-on. I probably learned more in these two weeks than I would in a month of school,” said another 2015 camper.
 
IIE has led numerous programs across the world that aim to increase access to education, including STEM education, particularly among marginalized communities. After decades of experience engaging schools, universities, and governments to expand broad participation in educational opportunities, IIE launched the WeTech consortium in 2013 to engage companies in efforts that foster access to education in the global communities where they work and in building a future talent pool for their industry. Qualcomm has been a lead partner in the initiative since its inception.
 
Qualcomm is supporting the next generation of inventors and technologists by increasing access to STEM education through programs that reach students at all levels, from grade school through graduate school.  Qualcomm STEM activities are aimed at inspiring greater diversity in STEM fields and expanding opportunities for underrepresented students. 

For more information, visit WeTech’s Twitter and Facebook page.

The Institute of International Education (IIE) created WeTech to help women and girls enter into and succeed in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) education and careers, as a core part of its commitment to empower women. IIE joined with corporate partners who share this vision to launch WeTech at the 2013 Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) Annual Meeting. WeTech is led by IIE and its initiatives are carried out in India, Africa and the United States with a consortium that includes Goldman Sachs, Google and Qualcomm Incorporated as lead collaborators.

The Institute of International Education is a world leader in the international exchange of people and ideas. IIE designs and implements programs of study and training for students, educators, young professionals and trainees from all sectors with funding from government agencies, foundations, and corporations. An independent, not-for-profit organization founded in 1919, IIE has a network of 19 offices and affiliates worldwide and over 1,400 member institutions.

Through its Center for Women's Leadership Initiatives, IIE provides opportunities for women worldwide to participate in cutting-edge training, professional development and exchange programs and pursue higher education. Our programs help women to develop and join networks of peers, mentors and experts and serve as effective leaders in the public and private sectors around the world.

Qualcomm Incorporated is a world leader in 3G, 4G and next-generation wireless technologies. Qualcomm Incorporated includes Qualcomm’s licensing business, QTL, and the vast majority of its patent portfolio. Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., a subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated, operates, along with its subsidiaries, substantially all of Qualcomm’s engineering, research and development functions, and substantially all of its products and services businesses, including its semiconductor business, QCT. For more than 30 years, Qualcomm ideas and inventions have driven the evolution of digital communications, linking people everywhere more closely to information, entertainment and each other. For more information, visit Qualcomm's website, OnQ blog, Twitter and Facebook pages @Thinkabit_Lab. Learn more about the work Qualcomm and its project collaborators are doing. 

Qualcomm is a trademark of Qualcomm Incorporated, registered in the United States and other countries. Thinkabit Lab is a trademark of Qualcomm Incorporated.