EY Launches Free App To Inspire Girls to Pursue STEM Careers

Seven additional countries set to launch EY STEM App aimed at inspiring girls aged 13 to 18 to pursue STEM careers

Initiative contributes to the EY Ripples corporate responsibility program’s ambition of positively impacting a billion lives by 2030.

EY today announces that the EY STEM App will be rolled out to in an additional seven countries, following a successful pilot in the US and India. The app aims to inspire girls 13-18 years of age pursue STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) careers.

The Republic of Ireland will launch first, followed by Canada, the UK, UAE, the Philippines, Australia and New Zealand throughout 2022 with the aim of reaching 100,000 girls. The move aligns with EY plans to support the next generation of young people and positively impacting a billion lives by 2030 through the EY Ripples corporate responsibility program.

The EY STEM App was developed by EY teams in collaboration with SkillsVR, an organization dedicated to developing potential talent through immersive learning. It features modules and activities focused on science, such as climate change or space exploration; technology, such as artificial intelligence (AI), 3D printing or blockchain; the future of work and skills that may be required for future, yet-to-be-defined jobs; and inspirational stories of women in STEM. The app is sponsored by the EY Women in Technology program, which was formed to create an inclusive culture to successfully harness technology’s potential to truly transform society.

Activities on the app were developed in collaboration with some of the world´s most respected non-profit and academic institutions, including the UN and World Economic Forum. All activities are aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals they directly impact, allowing girls to earn Global Goals digital badges as they progress.

Julie Linn Teigland, EY EMEIA Area Managing Partner and EY Global Leader – Women. Fast forward, says:

“Advancing girls’ skills and interests in STEM is vital to closing the gender gap. It’s crucial that women and girls have the opportunity to realize their full potential as leaders and change-makers in a world increasingly enabled by technology. We’re proud of the success the EY STEM App has had so far and rolling the app out to more countries is an important step forward in making STEM learning more accessible and rewarding for girls across the globe.”

The app reached more than 7,000 girls when piloted across New Delhi, Seattle and Atlanta, and as the app is rolled out, the EY organization is calling on governments, content providers, schools, corporates and non-profit organizations to collaborate help to further scale the app globally.

Gamified content and incentivized learning 

The free-to-use app connects girls with a wide range of learning activities from exploring new technologies, such as AI and blockchain, to learning how design thinking can help solve some of the world’s toughest challenges. Supported by inspirational stories of pioneering women, the app aims to not only nurture confidence and competence in STEM, but also the development of capabilities such as critical thinking and problem-solving, creativity and systems thinking, and social skills and teamwork.

Hundreds of individual activities — each broken into bite-size steps, such as watching a video, answering thought-provoking questions or carrying out an experiment — support self-directed learning that empowers girls to choose what, how and when they learn to build a real sense of accomplishment and confidence with the completion of each step.

Girls are also encouraged to take real-life actions beyond the phone app, such as interviewing members of their community, applying design thinking to solve community problems and conducting experiments, such as building a solar oven with household items.

As they complete more activities on the app, girls become eligible to receive a range of incentives, including mentoring and work shadowing with women who have forged successful careers in STEM fields.

Nayana Mitter, Associate Partner – Insurance Risk Advisory, Ernst & Young LLP and program mentor, says:

“The EY STEM App is a fantastic program and taking part as a mentor is a real privilege. I have a background in STEM and through the program I was able to share my learnings with the girls, while also reflecting and offering insights based on my own experiences. I hope the EY STEM App will encourage the girls taking part to shed their fears about studying and pursuing careers in STEM, and that as the program grows it continues to help girls around the world navigate real-world challenges as they build their careers.”

A successful pilot

The EY Stem App pilot in New Delhi, Seattle and Atlanta involved more than 50 schools and non-profits, with 91,000 activity steps completed, 600 rewards won and around $10,000 donated to charities. Nearly 1 million minutes of “real-life actions” were taken by girls to support the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

The pilot also received recognition from the Nobel Prize Summit, the UN Global Compact on Gender Equality, the OECD Observatory of Public Sector Innovation, the International Center for Research on Women and the UN SDG Festival.