Hack4Her is the only continuous female-focused student hackathon in the Netherlands since 2022. Our goal is (i) improving female retention in the discipline and creating a safe space for women to explore technology, (ii) providing reward and recognition, and (iii) cultivating an inclusive computer science and electrical engineering population.
The event has been successful in the past few years but needs support to fully sink in. Since 2022, Hack4Her has welcomed over 250 hackers and 300 participants to a vibrant program of hands-on workshops and keynotes. To achieve long-term retention, continuity of the event organization is crucial. With this proposal, we have the ambition to lift this hackathon to a truly national event from 2026 onwards by first bringing it to the TU/e campus and opening the participation and volunteering to 4TU students and staff. 4TUs will get involved by co-designing a challenge and sendingcomputer science and electrical engineering students to participate in the event. 4TUs will take turns in both providing challenges and hosting the event. To achieve long-term continuity within the 4TU we have a scientific committee and we are supported by European networks IEEE BeNeLux section’s Women in Engineering Acinity Group and Women4Cyber-NL
- Katja Tuma, Dept. of Mathematics and Computer Science, TU/e
- Anna Sperotto, Computer Science and the Electrical Engineering dept, UT
- Megha Khosla, Dept. of Intelligent Systems, TUD
- Pedro Vergara Barrios, Intelligent Electrical Power Grid, TUD