Targeted Academies:

• Fife Women’s Technology Centre
• Newham Training and Education Centre
• Northeast Surrey College of Technology
• Enrollment Figures (% of females in the Cisco Networking Academy Program, as of 2001):
• Fife Women’s Technology Centre: 100%
• Newham Training and Education Centre: 50%
• Northeast Surrey College of Technology: 22%

Recruitment & Retention Strategies

• Reduced or free tuition
• Free childcare
• Advertising in local papers, nurseries, shops, community centers
• Flyers and posters that include photos of females
• Direct presentations to prospective students
• Open houses
• Work placements and mentoring activities
• Develop different “tracks” of the Academy Program to suit students’ different levels

Constraints/Challenges

• Networking work experience is pivotal to enter the job market
• Female students and instructors experience unequal opportunities in the IT workforce
• Travel required in networking requires flexibility among husbands and families
• Lack of resources to organize work placements and other job support to students
• Availability of childcare impacts women’s ability to enroll in vocational training in general

Recommendations

• Develop work placement program for students
• Partner with government to develop activities that raise awareness of gender issues among employees and managers in IT companies
• Work with the private sector to organize work placements in IT companies for students
• Hold more recruitment sessions targeting female students who are not enrolled in the Networking Academy program
• Raise gender issue awareness of employers and men in the IT sector
• Provide easily accessible materials and tools to help instructors and administrators recruit women

Complete report, to include the following:

• Overview of Women and IT in the UK
• IT Policy Framework
• Gender Policy Framework
• Non-Government Gender & IT Initiatives
• Cisco Networking Academy Program in the UK