International Day of Women & Girls in Science
Recognising the achievements and mentorship of girls and women in STEMM – our students, ECRs, professors, and professional support staff - and how we are continuing to work together to inspire future generations to pursue studies and careers in biomedical science.
The United Nation's (UN) International Day of Women and Girls in Science, is acknowledged annually on 11 February and is now in its ninth year. It marks the ongoing need to promote equal access and participation of females in science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medicine (STEMM) and the continued importance of having female role models within these areas.
Women and girls represent half of the world’s population and, therefore, also half of its potential.
UN 2024
On this day we give recognition to our own role models past and present – women such Marie Curie a physicist and chemist who made groundbreaking contributions to the fields of radioactivity and nuclear physics in 1898. Today, she still remains an inspirational figure and icon for women in science and is a shining example of what is possible through determination and curiosity.
Here in the School of Biomedical Sciences at the University of Melbourne, we are surrounded by inspiring women biomedical scientists who are not only making stellar contributions to research and advancing health – but are motivating future generations through innovative teaching, mentoring, and our own outreach events such as eMeet a Biomedical Scientist and GTAC’s Biomedical Sciences Day.
Please take a moment this week and during International Day of Women & Girls in Science to reflect upon and recognize the progress being made in the School and the many achievements of our women in STEMM.
Here are just a few of the highlights.
Highlighting Achievements
| Dr Amber Wilems-Jones (DBP) was awarded the 2023 David White Award for Teaching Excellence, one of the University’s most prestigious teaching awards – and says the greatest reward from teaching is knowing that she can make a difference in a student’s life. Read more |
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| Dr Jennifer Juno (DMI) was awarded the Woodward Medal for her research on T cells in protective immune responses to vaccination. Read more |
| The ‘Corona Queens’ research team led by Prof Katherine Kedzierska (DMI) won the prestigious 2023 Australian Infectious Diseases Research Centre Eureka Prize for pioneering COVID-19 immunity research. Read more |
| Dr Emma Bawden (DMI) and research team have revealed unprecedented insights into CD4+ T cells, a type of immune cell, which show promise for immunotherapies against melanoma, the most severe form of skin cancer. Read more |
| Prof Laura Mackay (DMI) became the youngest fellow elected to the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences. Read more Laura also featured in our Master of Biomedical Science Spotlight Series: Research Possibilities. Watch now |
| Dr Magda Montgomery (DAP) appointed as Editor-in-Chief of NPJ Metabolic Health and Disease journal. Read more Magda also featured in our Master of Biomedical Science Spotlight Series: Coursework Showcase. Watch now |
Inspiring Future Generations
Through our outreach programs like the GTAC supported Biomedical Sciences Day and National Science Week’s eMeet a Biomedical Scientist we are working to inspire the next generation of biomedical scientists including girls and young women looking to pursue a career in STEMM.
At the GTAC event in 2023, Head of School, Professor Wilkinson-Berka encouraged students to apply to the Bachelor of Biomedicine after completing their VCE studies. “When you come to Melbourne you have access to the whole of the Melbourne Biomedical Precinct, a collaboration of hospitals and research institutes that are right on our doorstep, not to mention the diverse range of career opportunities upon completion of your studies,” she said.
| Dr Kate Hatzopoulos (DAP) participated in the eMeet a Biomedical Scientist program last year as part of National Science Week. “The highlight of the session was all the interesting questions from the students, such as asking about the challenges to be a woman in science”. Read more |
| PhD student Jenna Hall (DAP) is making eye cells from stem cells: “What I hope to do after my PhD is make germline cells from stem cells to help couples and singles start families on a timeline best suited to them.” Find out about Jenna's latest work on a retinal disease analysis tool. Read more See Jenna in 'In the Lab' video series where she speaks about her research higher degree experience. Watch now |
| Yunqi Bao, Master of Biomedical Science alumni, is now working at Merck as a Customer Service Specialist. She said the Masters degree provided a supportive, caring community, highly experienced professors and a welcoming working lab environment. Read more |
Promoting Gender Equality
In the School of Biomedical Sciences we have two awards that encourage equal opportunities for women in STEMM education and research careers: the MJ Gething Gender Equity Award, now in its sixth year, has supported over 18 early career women researchers to continue career momentum while also having significant caring responsibilities. Recipient in 2023, Dr Sapni Devi (DMI) says: “We have so many leading female researchers to seek aspiration from and being in Biomedical Sciences allows you to make discoveries, contribute to new knowledge or even translate your work." Read more
In 2021, the $100,000 annual Fabienne Mackay Award was introduced to help one or more high performing, independent researchers to maintain research momentum following the birth or adoption of a child. The 2022 recipient Dr Hamish McWilliam (DMI) won the grant after taking paternity leave in 2022 to support his partner's return to work. He hopes that by receiving this award, he can help raise awareness and normalise other men at the school and university to take parental leave, as to "level the playing field by not leaving the childcare entirely up to women". Dr Laura Edgington-Mitchell (DBP) was the inaugural recipient of the award in 2021. Read more
| Professor Justine Mintern (DBP) is the Associate Dean of Graduate Research of MDHS where she is focused on enhancing wellbeing, career development training opportunities and high quality supervision for all of graduate research students in the Faculty. Read more |
Recently we saw Prof Kaylene Simpson (DBP) receive a promotion to full professor. She specialises in breast cancer invasion and metastasis, with a wealth of experience in assay development, data interpretation and analysis and overall guidance in the area of functional genomics. Read more |
And this is only glimpse into what is happening in our School every single day - we hope you are as inspired as we are!
Are you interested in pursing a career in STEMM in the School of Biomedical Sciences?
Explore these resources to get started: