Microsoft created the DigiGirlz High Tech Camp in 2000. The camp offers teenage girls hands-on experience with technology and presentations by executive speakers, tours and demonstrations on cutting edge technology in programs specifically designed for youth. Locations in St. Louis, San Diego, Stony Brook, New York, and Charlotte and North Carolina, among others are free of charge and open to all girls that meet age and grade requirements. However, Microsoft does not provide accommodations such as housing and transportation.
This meticulous introductory course is intended for girls with a demonstrated aptitude in math and science but very little previous engineering or computer science experience. This program seeks high-school students who are not yet sure of their college majors and would like an opportunity to explore and conclude if engineering and computer science is of interest. Chosen each year from a national applicant list are the top 40 eleventh-grade female math and science students.
Girls Exploring Technology is a free three-day program at the Joliet Junior college in Illinois for middle school girls. The hands-on learning activities are designed to give participants experiences necessary for a successful future in any career. The object is to offer insight into work-related areas normally regarded as unconventional for women. The camp offers exposure to career options in architecture and construction, orthotics and prosthetics, engineering and green technology, among several others.
GirlStart, in Austin, Texas, offers students in grades three to ten opportunities to explore a wide variety of career options. Motion in the Ocean, for third graders, explores the world of marine biology and how to make an online game. Fourth and fifth grade girls have adventures in a bustling rainforest at camp Tropical Paradise or learn the design and creation of online software in Camp Hermione. Sixth, seventh and eighth graders in Camp Hermione also learn about high-tech fashion, solar energy, 3D model design and robotics. Water Works is based on the WaterBotics curriculum and teaches ninth and tenth grade students to design a functional underwater vessel.