Women's Technology Program
in Electrical Engineering & Computer Science

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

       

WTP-EECS

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About WTP in EECS

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, WTP 2021 will be a virtual online program, not residential on the MIT campus.  WTP 2021 will be taught LIVE (synchronously) Monday - Friday from 10am-5pm ET. Students will have daily homework assignments to work on outside of the live WTP hours. Office hours for homework help from staff may be offered on evenings and weekends. There will also be evening and weekend community building activities that will be required for all participants.

The MIT Women's Technology Program in EECS (WTP-EECS) is a rigorous, fast-paced four-week academic experience where womxn high school students explore electrical engineering, computer science, and topics related to EECS through hands-on classes, labs, and team-based projects in the summer after 11th grade.

WTP is a women-focused, collaborative community aimed at empowering students from groups historically underrepresented and underserved in engineering. We especially encourage students to apply who will be the first family member to attend college, who come from high schools with limited access to STEM classes and activities, or who are African American, Hispanic, or Native American. 

Classes are taught by current female MIT students or recent graduates. Visit our Curriculum page for more details about WTP-EECS coursework, and other links to the left to learn about how to apply. Current MIT students wishing to teach for WTP-EECS please visit the Staff page.

20-40 participants are selected each year from a nationwide pool of applicants who have demonstrated outstanding academic talent in math and science. No prior experience in physics or engineering is required, but we expect students to handle college-level material at a rapid pace.

WTP was created by MIT students in EECS in 2002 who were concerned about the fact that many young women do not consider engineering or computer science majors in college, despite having strong math and science backgrounds and analytical abilities. Research into this issue identifies some key pipeline barriers:

  • lack of pre-college computing experience
  • negative stereotypes about the field
  • lack of female role models
  • lack of confidence in their potential to pursue EECS

706 students have attended WTP-EECS since it began in 2002. Over 64% of WTP-EECS alumnae have chosen college majors in engineering or computer science; another 21% have majored in science or mathematics (the remaining 15% are in a variety of fields).

Many credit WTP with sparking their initial interest in engineering and computer science.