It was a pleasure to hear from Chloe Lau, who studies Computing at Imperial College London and is currently a STEP Intern at Google. Read below about Chloe's uni experience so far as a female in STEM, and her advice on getting internships in the tech sector!
"Go with your mind, follow your interests, don’t let others sway you"
1) Why did you choose to study Computing at Imperial College? What have you enjoyed most about it so far?
I have had my mind set on computer science very early on in my education, despite being raised in an all girls, non-STEM focused school. I chose Imperial (or should I say, Imperial chose me out of the odds) as I really wanted to gain theoretical knowledge, yet have a strong industrial connection. Imperial is the best of both worlds so it had been my target since Sixth Form.
2) Can you describe a typical day at Imperial?
A typical day would be around 4 hours of lectures, in one of the two lecture halls first year computing students use, when we don’t have lectures, we’d gather at the computer labs and do our own work, chill, or just socialise with people. It is an amazing place where you get to meet people from all stages of university, from undergraduates to postgraduates and sometimes staff. It is a great place to learn not only academically, but personally.
3) Can you tell us about your journey from school to university? Did you face any challenges?
I live at Imperial’s furthest halls at Acton, which means I would spend about half an hour to 45 minutes to commute to Imperial’s main campus at South Kensington. It gives me a break from work and I often plug podcasts throughout the commute to kill the boredom and learn something new every day.
4) How has your experience as a female in STEM been? (Or being a female of ethnic minority?)
It’s of both ends really, you sometimes do feel really left out, it’s hard to find much female friends in the area and they might not understand our needs, but at the same time, it’s been improving and more and more companies and universities advocate for females more and have more opportunities for female students and those who identify as females.
At the same time, there might be male students that think that this is unfair and 50:50 isn’t something that is needed, but alas it does help encourage more females into the STEM and Tech industry.
I personally was really glad to have many opportunities to go to events and conferences targeting females in STEM and Tech, and they have all been really insightful.
5) What are your top tips for success for a student interested in studying a STEM subject at uni?
Go with your mind, follow your interests, don’t let others sway you. Make their discouragement your fuel towards your goal.
6) Having been selected to be on Google’s Get Ahead EMEA Program, can you describe your experience so far and your advice for future applicants?
It is an invite only program so I can’t say much about application, but to get more of these outreach opportunities signing up for university program mail lists by the companies and organisations, you won’t know when you’ll get something useful out of them. (I personally had many opportunities coming this way, so check your mailboxes) Always keep an updated CV with you!
7) Are there any STEM outreach or extracurricular activities that you’ve recently been involved in?
I’ve been working with DoCSoc and Google DSC at Imperial, which we hope to engage to more younger prospective students and encourage students, no matter gender, race, or household background to apply to Computer Science or STEM if you find its fascinating. I also am a member of SEO London and it has been a great opportunity for networking and meeting people from different universities. ECs wise, I’m a divemaster so I do occasionally go to seasides and have a nice dive, where I can embrace nature and get all the stress away temporarily.
8) What are your plans for the future, in terms of careers/volunteering/projects?*
Busy year upcoming, would start off with a lot of Internship Applications, as well as working with DoCSoc for organising freshers events so the new students, despite COVID, can adapt to university and enjoy.
Volunteering wise, am looking to join the Imperial’s ambassador team and help out at events, as well as continuing to write blogs for the department.
(*NOTE: this interview was conducted in 2020)