Women in Physics: Recruit, retain, reimagine
Women in Physics (WiPA)is a new initiative created by women for women, to correct the gender imbalance among students in physics and astronomy. There’s a need for a formal ‘home’ for female physicists — a community of support to amplify women’s voices and reimagine their contributions to science. WiPA activities and initiatives focus on increasing the number of women in Waterloo’s Department of Physics.
A change has already begun. Our physics students have been quick to embrace WiPA’s mission, and a new community of empowerment has been born. Networking events and physics workshops and seminars led by women physicists have strengthened bonds and deepened the pipeline needed to ensure that we meet our goals of recruitment and retention.
Our outreach goes beyond current UW physics students. This year, we invited girls in grades seven and eight to participate in PhysiX: Girls Matter to encourage and engage them in the exploration of physics. Here’s what they had to say about the experience:
"It was a lot of fun listening to the talk. I love Dr. Katie Mack’s book and am so excited to have a copy of my own!”
“My daughter is always reluctant to ask her million questions, but this was plenty of incentive to ask them.”
“Thank you! This was so cool, and I have been wanting to learn some python for a while!”
“I would be enthusiastic about participating as much as possible in the next offering of this event!”
A future without gender barriers
Unlock all possible connections. Mentor and be mentored. Amplify women’s voices and celebrate their achievements. This community of supportive peers will broaden opportunities for all women physicists and eventually put them on equal footing with their male counterparts. Together we can achieve our goal of correcting the gender imbalance among students in physics and astronomy.
We can’t wait to show you our continued progress. The results will be transformational.