When you hear the word role model, who do you think of? Someone who has been a mentor to others? Someone who has been nominated for an award? Or someone who shares their own unique perspective? Let me introduce a role model – Ellen Andréasson. She is in her final year of the master's program in biotechnology at Chalmers University of Technology, is one of the three finalists for the Microsoft Tech Girl of the Year award and has been involved in many different ways to inform, inspire and guide girls in technology. In this interview, she talks very openly about her time at Chalmers, why she thinks gender equality is so important and how she became one of three finalists for Tech Girl of the Year.
Ellen is in her final year at Chalmers and is currently writing her thesis. A thesis is a large degree project that you write full-time during your last semester. It can be done at a company, a university or another part of the university (called an institution). For Ellen, this means that she is doing her thesis at RISE (Swedish Research Institute) where she is currently contributing to the development of a method that is used to measure bacteria on surfaces.”The long-term goal of this method is to be able to use it in healthcare and the food industry.” she says.
But her five years at Chalmers will soon be over and when asked if she will miss studying, she replies that ”"Yes, but you start to get really ready. These years have really been the best time of my life, but I'm looking forward to what's to come. It's a mixed feeling"” she means.
What should she do now? She has a great interest in start-ups and is also looking into the life science industry. Maybe she will start her own company in life science?
For her, her time at Chalmers has not only consisted of studying. Ellen has also been involved in organizations. What she is most proud of is her work for Engineers Without Borders. It is an organization that works with sustainability issues in Sweden and all over the world. The reason why she is proud of it is because she has been involved for several years and has seen the organization grow. With her own efforts and efforts, she has helped to develop a good structure for the organization. It has not only benefited Engineers Without Borders but has also given her the opportunity to grow as a person.
In addition to Engineers Without Borders, Ellen has been involved in Pepp!, which is a mentorship program for girls at university and high school. ”"The first year I was a mentor to a high school girl and the second year I organized the program together with a project group"”. Pepp! aims (just like Womengineer) to inspire and motivate more girls to become engineers.
What does it take to get more young girls to technical universities? According to Ellen, it takes more than just efforts from students or commitment like Pepp!. She believes that ”"Guys should also be included in the conversation. We can only change the societal norms that exist today when we open the conversation with men who have dominated the tech industry"”.
For Ellen, gender equality and inclusion are important issues. It was one of the reasons why she applied for the Microsoft Tech Girl of the Year award. ”"When I heard the words Tech and Microsoft before, the first thing I thought of was programming and IT. That kept me from applying for the award the year before.". But if there's one thing she's learned about biotechnology, it's that "”"You study a lot of math and do a lot of programming to make different models of, for example, cell growth. Many people think we only exist in the lab, but I spend at least as much time programming as I do in the lab.". She wants other girls to also realize that technology is often so much more than the prejudices or thoughts you have about it. Her drive and passion for this makes it not difficult to understand why she was one of the three finalists this year!
Finally, Ellen wants to encourage everyone to dare to believe in themselves. She talks about research that shows that women only apply for jobs if they meet all the requirements, while men, on the other hand, can apply for a job if they only meet a few or one requirement on the list. She herself is currently applying for a job after her degree and recently applied for a job where she only met one of the five requirements; which was to have an interest in life science. Experience in investments, patents and entrepreneurship are things she could learn, she thought.
What do you think? Did she get the job? Yes, of course! What she wants to illustrate with that is that you don't always have to be perfect, but sometimes you just have to dare and take the plunge. It is precisely for this reason that Ellen is such a good role model: she tests, dares and inspires.
This interview was conducted by Roos Bottema, April 10, 2021.