Tackling GENDER IMBALANCE
#THISAYRSHIREGIRLCAN
We welcomed First Minister
Nicola Sturgeon MSP to
our Kilwinning campus on
International Women’s Day, as
she put her backing behind our
#ThisAyrshireGirlCan campaign.
The #ThisAyrshireGirlCan
campaign aims to inspire women
to take up traditionally maledominated careers.
The First Minister spoke about
her rise to the top in Scottish
politics and inspired the packed
audience of female primary and
secondary school pupils and
students to follow their dreams.
‘#ThisAyrshireGirlCan’ was
created by the Ayrshire
College Student Association to
encourage more women to think
about careers in sport and STEM
areas where female participation
is traditionally low.
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A specially created film
celebrating the campaign’s
one-year anniversary was
shown at the event. The
DVD celebrates 22 women
studying science, technology,
engineering and maths courses
at Ayrshire College, including
Modern Apprentices working
in companies like GSK,
Hyspec Engineering and Spirit
AeroSystems.
Two of the stars of the film Adele Baird and Abbie Robb explained what motivated them
to choose their STEM careers.
Afterwards, the First Minister
held an enlightening Q&A
session with the audience.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon
said “#ThisAyrshireGirlCan will
not only help young women
see the opportunities that a
STEM career can bring and
The magazine of Ayrshire College
give them confidence to pursue
their ambitions, it will also help
Scotland’s economy to be as
strong as it can be - by ensuring
that we are tapping into the
talents of all of our people and
not underusing the skills of half
of our population.”
The College organises events
throughout the year to
encourage young women to
consider a career in traditionally
male-dominated sectors.