So funny story here. I am a woman who returned to graduate school in Engineering after a career in the oil industry ended. You know, price of oil and whatnot. Not a great future there.

My lab is 90% female, and our female advisor encouraged us to apply.

None of us are eligible. https://twitter.com/AdrianaLaGrange/status/1359938953571274752

"Women in STEM" have to be under 30 and can't be here on a student visa.

90% of the graduate school engineering faculty are international students. Of the 10% that aren't, a number are not Alberta residents.

I'm 37. Too old for encouragement, I guess?

The scholarship amount would cover two months of child care, which would be an incredible help, as my 5 and 7 year old are challenging to entertain while I try to get back up to speed on things I learned nearly twenty years ago. And do research. And teach.

Bear in mind, if I had gone with my other plan, which was finishing welding school...I would have had access to EI while I was in school as well as a number of other attractive trades-targeted support programs. These are well appreciated, and excellent programs.

I just think maybe the Minister of multi-culturalism and status of women might like to broaden her perspective on what our incentive programs are really encouraging and ensure that's the direction she wants to go. Most of the Alberta women I know can't afford to go back to school

I'd also just like to say that for 30 years there have been programs to encourage women to go INTO engineering. The number of engineers that exit the profession is far more disturbingly unbalanced than the entrance figures are.

A person can accept that after thirty years and NO progress on gender split in the last ten, it's conceivable that maybe men are just more likely to choose engineering. And that's ok. But the women who choose it? And who succeed? We lose them in droves. Would you like to know why

It might be because women who persist in engineering have an attraction to logic and problem solving. And there's a problem in our society, especially in Alberta, around work and industrial workplaces. And around child care, and attitudes. And expectations.

Why the hell would we want to encourage a woman over 30 to learn anything new, right?

And maybe that's not the intent. But it is awfully familiar. And I mean awful.

Don't worry. I won't stop. I don't NEED anyone's encouragement.

But I have to say, it would be really nice to see, FOR ONCE, anyone interested in why women, especially bright, talented, competent and effective women, continue to be underemployed, undercompensated and ultimately depart industry in Alberta.

And they do.