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WIDE (Women in Innovation, Design and Engineering) Student Conference – Boundless Engineering

After 3 years of online events, the Women in Engineering Student Conference comes back face-to-face, this time widened to Women in Innovation, Design and Engineering (WIDE) and with the theme Boundless Engineering.

According to Nobel Laureate Herb Simon: “… to design is to devise courses of action aimed at changing existing situations into preferred ones”. In the world as it is, many changes are needed to achieve a fairer and more sustainable planet. Much of this transformation will be enabled by designers and engineers. This conference explores how to make a difference as an engineer or designer. The possibilities are boundless.

The conference starts with a keynote from “Engineers without borders”, who will speak about their international work and how students can be part of these projects. Then, an employers’ panel will be open for questions and there will be several workshops and presentations from engineers, all at different points in their careers.

The conference is designed to give you as much opportunity as possible to meet other students, Associate Lecturers and other members of OU staff. The conference starts on Saturday, 1 July, with an evening dinner and networking opportunities, followed by a complete programme on Sunday. Participants can choose to join the event on both days or only on the Sunday.

Important dates

Conference: 1st and 2nd July 2023

Registration deadline: 20th June 2023

Bursary applications will be considered up until the registration deadline and successful applicants notified as soon as possible

We have 50 accommodation bursaries of up to £75 and 25 travel bursaries of up to £100 available.

To apply for a bursary please complete the form at this link: Bursary Application Form

We aim to widen participation as much as possible and offer support to as many students as we can. Please consider sharing travel or looking for other types of accommodation.

Venue

The Open University
Walton Hall
Milton Keynes
MK7 6AA

map

Travel to the Milton Keynes campus can be found at:

http://www.open.ac.uk/about/estates/travel-advice/directions-walton-hall-campus

The map of the campus can be found at:

https://www.open.ac.uk/about/estates/travel-advice/map-venues-walton-hall

More information will be sent to the participants prior to the conference.

Registration

Conference fee: £29

Meals: The evening social dinner on Saturday, lunch on Sunday and refreshments at tea/coffee breaks during the conference are all included.

Register here: Conference Attendance

Accommodation

Please make your own arrangements for accommodation. There are many hotels in Milton Keynes within walking distance of the OU. There is ample car parking on campus.

Conference Programme

	Saturday 1st July
17:00	Arrival and registration
18:30	Dinner
	Talks and activity with Faye Banks and Phebe Mann
	Networking with students, staff and guests
	Sunday 2nd July
09:45	Arrival & Registration (day-only delegates)
10:00	Welcome from Claudia Eckert and Diane Butler
10:15	Keynote speech: Engineers without borders (Emma Crichton – Head of Engineering)
11:15	Workshops
	Planning your T452 Project - Andrea Patel
	The workshops targets UG students planning for T452 in 2024 or 2025.
	The workshop provides an introduction to T452 the Engineering Project and includes tips for preparing and completing T452.
	The workshop closes with a Q&A session where participants can raise any questions they might have in relation to T452 The Engineering Project.
	Supporting female students at the OU - Daphne Chang
	The workshop targets all students.
	This workshop explores barriers experienced by female Engineering students in the work place and how the OU can help to increase resilience and/or overcome these barriers.
	Lab Tour - Open Stem Lab, Materials Lab, Parry D Lab
12:15	Lunch
13:00	Workshops
	Planning your T452 Project - Andrea Patel The workshops targets UG students planning for T452 in 2024 or 2025 The workshop provides an introduction to T452 the Engineering Project and includes tips for preparing and completing T452. The workshop closes with a Q&A session where participants can raise any questions they might have in relation to T452 The Engineering Project.
	Choosing your Engineering route - Jan Kowal The workshops targets UG students at Level 1 and 2 This question and answer session, will give you the opportunity to ask any questions you may have about the qualification and pathway options in your design or engineering studies at the OU
	Supporting female students at the OU - Daphne Chang The workshop targets all students. This workshop explores barriers experienced by female Engineering students in the work place and how the OU can help to increase resilience and/or overcome these barriers.
	Lab Tour - Open Stem Lab, Materials Lab, Parry D Lab
14:00	Panel discussion and Q&A : Making a difference as an engineer
	Tamara Monti - EuroNorth Education Sales Manager
	Ramona Mihailescu – Network Rail – Engineer
	Jodie Bowman – Leonardo – Senior Microwave Engineer
	Professor Fiona Clark – Leonardo – Head of Capability for EW Sensors
15:00	Coffee break
15:30	Early career engineer talks:
	Lois Damptey, PhD student, Open University
	Tiffany Roberts, Nextbase, Test manager
	Tamara Monti, EuroNorth, Education Sales Manager
16:30	Closing remarks – Claudia Eckert

Past and future events

Year	Event	Venue
2016	Conference – Making connections – Celebrating Women in Engineering	Walton Hall campus in Milton Keynes
2017	Conference – Creating supportive environments	Walton Hall campus in Milton Keynes
2018	Conference – Levelling the playing field	Walton Hall campus in Milton Keynes
2019	Conference - Transforming the future – engineering for all	Birmingham
2021	Conference – Engineering heroes	Online
2022	November webinar series	Online
2023	Conference – Boundless engineering	Walton Hall campus in Milton Keynes
2024	Conference - TBC	Online
2025	Conference - TBC	Scotland
2026	Conference - TBC	Online