An Event like no Other!

Everything you need to know about GHC scholarship!

Grass Hoper Conference is the world’s largest conference of women in technology. It is celebrated annually. It used to happen every year in USA. But due to pandemic its happening virtually. Dr. Anita Borg and Dr. Telle Whitney founded Grace Hopper Celebration (GHC) in 1994 to promote diversity and inclusion. To honor them it is celebrated to inspire women in tech.

The Celebration results networking, and mentoring. GHC presenters are leaders in their respective fields who recognize the importance of diversity in tech. The Celebration also offers professional development through a variety of activities. The activities include professional workshops, personality development, open-source day and much more. It helps women from around the world learn, network, and celebrate their achievements.

Now your question will be How to apply for the GHC?

Let’s have a look at how you can apply for the same. This time the application started around March and ended on 28th April. You can visit their official website here.

Before starting I would like to share a tip with you people. Do not apply at last moment as the application is way long. Start filling the form as soon as you come to know about it.

YOU NEED TO COMPLY TOWARDS ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

• You must be a full-time student enrolled in an accredited degree program at a college or university at the time of the celebration. Those graduating prior to the celebration are not eligible unless accepted to another related degree program (such as a M.S. or Ph.D. program).
• Show satisfactory progress toward a degree such as, but not limited to, electrical engineering, human-computer interaction, math, physics, or management information systems.
• Be able to demonstrate an interest in computer science.
• You cannot have been an AnitaB.org-GHC Scholarship recipient in previous years.
• You must be at least 18 years of age.
• You cannot accept more than one scholarship to GHC.
• If you receive a scholarship and do not notify AnitaB.org that you cannot attend prior to the celebration, you will not be eligible in future years as this takes a scholarship away from another student that could have attended.

APPLICANT INFORMATION

You need to provide basic details like your full name, address ,institution name. It includes demographic details, education and career information, transcripts and resume(will be discussing in later sections).

SCHOLARSHIP INFORMATION

This includes information whether you have attended the conference earlier or not. For first timers like you and me(when I applied ) just keep clicking no to all the questions coming ahead.

ESSAY QUESTIONS

The most and significant section of the whole application is this part according to me. This includes two essay questions

The essay questions include:
Q1: Tell us why you want to attend GHC, what type of impact will being at a conference focused on women in computing have on you? (maximum 200 words)

The GHC website guide says:

We strongly encourage you to share any experiences with overcoming unique, personally important, and/or challenging factors in your background. While not an exhaustive list, some examples of unique challenges could include: the quality of your early educational environment, your socioeconomic background, culture, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, having a disability, and other life or work experiences. Please discuss how such factors have influenced your goals and preparation for your career as a woman in computing.

NOTE- While writing the essays make sure to make the essays as personal as you can. And be honest with your essays. Try to include your past experiences, what difficulties you faced in your tech journey, be it financial crisis, imposter syndrome, lack of confidence etc. Try to incorporate your struggles as stories.

Q2: How will you share your experience at GHC with others? What type of impact will your experience at GHC have on others in your community? (maximum 200 words)

The GHC website guide says:

Please tell us why you would like to attend the Grace Hopper Celebration and how you plan to share your experience with others (including your school community) after attending the conference. This is your opportunity to share any information you believe will have an impact on being selected as an AnitaB.org GHC Scholar.

NOTE: In this question try to focus on how you can give back to your society. How you will influence women around you from your experiences. Try to include what steps you will take to empower women and how will you encourage girls to take up STEM fields.

ESSAY QUESTIONS

Here you need to upload your resume and unofficial college transcripts.

NOTE-

• Make sure your resume is only one page long.
• Do not include your pic in resume.
• Do mention all your important projects, volunteering.
• Start working on your resume as soon as possible.

There is no rule that needs to be followed. Just make sure you do what interests you. Make it a point to include your love for technology through your resume!

RECOMMENDATION

This is also one of the most important section in your application without which your application is not considered complete. One recommendation is mandatory for all student applicants.

It is mandatory that the recommendation be provided by a faculty member.

Get in touch with your professor who can recommend you. Tell them what GHC is. Furthermore, inform them how GHC offers faculty scholarships too.

FINAL STEP

Agree to all the rules and submit your application for review. Rest leave to God and relaaax :)

Easy yaa!

I hope this post of mine inspired you to apply for GHC next year. And there is no better time than now to start preparing!!!

Feel free to ping me anytime on linkedIn , email.

All the best for future endeavours!