UTS offers bonus Atar points to women applying to engineering, information technology and construction courses

A university is trying to rectify what it calls a “woman problem” in courses dominated by men.

UTS is offering bonus ATAR points to women who apply to engineering, construction and IT courses.

A Sydney university is attempting to sort out what it calls the “woman problem” in engineering, information technology and construction by offering a 10 point entry bonus to female applicants in the hope of boosting numbers in those areas of study.

The University of Technology Sydney will add 10 points to the Australian tertiary admission ranks (ATARs) of women who want to study in the three areas from next year.

“A generation of initiatives to support greater participation by women in these key industries of the future has seen minor progress,” director of UTS Women in Engineering and IT Arti Agarwal said. “In order to step-change gender diversity in these professions the gender mix at undergraduate entry level needs to change.”

The university’s move was approved by the NSW Anti-Discrimination Board and is intended to encourage more women to consider applying for courses and careers dominated by men but which are highly desirable to employers.

While 84 per cent of the nation’s engineering graduates are men, the professional body Engineers Australia says only 13 per cent of the engineering workforce is female. In the case of computing degrees, women account for only 19 per cent of enrolments.

UTS civil and environmental engineering student Jessica Massih said supporting women to gain entry to university and while they were studying was “key to [them] believing they have a role in these industries”.

“Getting there is just the start,” Ms Massih said. “Once you are at uni, you do the same subjects, same assignments, and work just as hard to get good grades and opportunities.”