Women in STEM Online Competition

We ran a competitiın for students thinking of studying Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics (STEM) subjects at higher education level or considering a career in STEM.

By joining this fun game, the participants didn't only increase their knowledge about the role of women in science but also had a chance to win exciting prizes. Three of the participants won the prizes below, following the prize draw:

Prizes:

  • One iPad mini
  • One rucksack
  • One mobile microscope

The campaign started on 11 February to coincide with the “International Day of Women and Girls in Science” and ran until 8 March, International Women’s Day.

WINNERS

The winners are below:

Winners:

1 iPad mini: Gizem Şentürk.

1 Rucksack: Nur Gümüş

1 mobile microscope: Ayşegül Okumuş

Reserved winners:

1 iPad mini: Zeliha Şervanlı

1 Rucksack: Birkan Susam

1 mobile microscope: Sevgi Özel

Background:

PISA studies across the OECD generally show higher achievement amongst girls than boys in maths, science and literacy. Neuroscience research has also shown that girls and boys perform equally well in STEM subjects. However, the world over, STEM subjects are far more likely to be studied by boys. Much of this divide appears to spring from social factors such as gender stereotyping. 

17 interesting facts about women in STEM, both in the UK and in Turkey

  1. Selma Soysal (1924 - 2011) - First woman professor of mathematics in Turkey (Mathematics Department, Istanbul University
  2. Florence Nightingale (1820 – 1910) – founder of modern nursing
  3. Kamile Şevki Mutlu (1906 - 1987) - First woman professor of medicine in Turkey (Faculty of Medicine, Ankara University)
  4. Prof. Nurcan Meral Özel -  the first time a Turkish scientist has been appointed as a director of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization's international monitoring branch in 2014
  5. Kathleen Lonsdale (1903-1971) - first female president of British Association for the Advancement of Science, First female professor of UCL
  6. Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin (1910-1994) - Only British woman to win a Nobel science prize
  7. Altan Edige - First woman mechanical engineer in Turkey
  8. Elizabeth Garrett Anderson (1836-1917) – first British woman in the UK to qualify as a doctor
  9. Elizabeth Garrett Anderson (1836-1917) – first woman in the UK elected as mayor
  10. Sara Akdik (1897 - 1982) - First woman botanist in Turkey. First president in the Department of Pharmacobotanics and Genetics, Faculty of Sciences (İstanbul University)
  11. Amy Johnson (1903-1941) - became first woman in the world to become a British-trained ground engineer. Became first woman to fly solo to Australia and awarded CBE. Set and broke her own solo flight record from London to Cape Town, and flew across the Atlantic.
  12. Sabiha Rıfat Gürayman (1910 - 2003) - First woman Civil Engineer in Turkey. First woman to graduate from the Technical University of Istanbul, Department of Civil Engineering
  13. Mari Paris Pişmiş (1911 - 1999) - First woman scholar holding a PhD in Mathematics
  14. Women Scientists-Reflections, Challenges, and Breaking Boundaries, published by Oxford University Press in 2015, covered the life stories and research of three women scientists;
  • Prof. Dr. Sezer Şener Komsuoğlu
  • Prof. Dr. Gülsün Sağlamer
  • Prof. Dr. Ayhan Ulubelen

15. Müfide Küley (1904 - 1995) - First woman assistant in the Faculty of Medicine (Istanbul University)

16. 21 per cent of those working in Core STEM occupations in the UK in 2016 are women.

17. 11 February - International Day of Women and Girls in Science

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