-Nina Tan, 3B Computer Science Student
Attending GHC was such an amazing experience, and I will forever be grateful for the opportunity to attend GHC. Beyond just being incredible for career development and learning new skills, it's also incredibly inspiring to see so many women in tech all at the same time. It’s a celebration of DEI and belonging. Read more
-Kitty Li, 3A Computer Science Student
This year, I had the opportunity to attend my first Grace Hopper conference in person. After hearing all the stories about Grace Hopper in the past and having attended the conference virtually for the past two years since COVID-19, I think most of us were really excited to hear that the conference this year would be held in person. Although I knew how large of a conference Grace Hopper was, it was really shocking to see the magnitude of the conference and the number of women that came out, which was particularly evident during the opening ceremonies. Sitting in the opening ceremony, I felt very empowered but also strange. Read more
-3B Computer Science Student
Attending the Grace Hopper Conference was one of the most eye-opening experiences of my life. I had the opportunity of meeting so many bright women in the tech industry and hearing about how they impacted change through their work. The GHC female speakers at the conference are creating the technology of tomorrow. Seeing so many powerful female leaders applying software to tackle societal issues like global warming, social injustice, medical research and treatment proves that studying computer science is important to lead the future forward. Read more
-Hanya Sakr, 2A Software Engineering Student
There were so many powerful women at this event! And so many opportunities to talk and connect with someone from a school you’ve never heard of. I met a couple of wonderful people while waiting in line at the Expo! There were lots of different events from workshops to talks to career booths. So many ways to explore technology in Florida! Also getting to see Jessie J perform was amazing! Advice: come prepared for the Expo! It is very busy and can get a bit overwhelming, have multiple copies of your resume and be ready to talk to a lot of people (everyone is super nice!). Overall, it was a powerful week where I learnt a lot and I feel like every student should experience GHC.
-Maryam Afshar, 3A Computer Science Student
One of our attendees created a beautiful Notion page detailing her experience at GHC 2022. We have included a link to her page here so that you may see her reflection in its entirety.
-Nina Tan, 3B Computer Science Student
Here is another Notion reflection from one of our attendees. You can access her page here to read her reflection and see some photos!
-2A Computer Science Student
This year I had the honor of attending the Grace Hopper Celebration because of WiCS and the University of Waterloo. I am so thankful to have had the opportunity to meet so many incredible women. It was inspiring to hear that we all had similar stories which allowed us to form meaningful connections. Read more
-Melanie Foltak, 2B Software Engineering Student
GHC 2022 was an eye-opening experience for me both in the professional sense and at a personal level. Over the course of five days, aside from learning so much from women in tech around the world in different stages of their careers, I also got to know my peers more and discovered so many new friendships. One of my favourite aspects of the conference was the spontaneity! In fact, I did my first ever in-person technical interview at GHC 2022 when a slot opened up because another candidate backed out of the interview. Another cool encounter took place when Nina set up a meeting with Sue Harnett, the founder of Rewriting the Code. It was such a great experience hearing her perspectives and learning about the projects she plans to take on.
-2B Computer Science Student
During my time at the Grace Hopper Conference, I got exposed to a multitude of speakers that gave me the opportunity to see the world from a different perspective. I learned about quantum computing with Sandra Soueid, better understanding concepts like qubits, superposition and interference. We also touched on algorithms like Shor’s Algorithm and Grover’s Algorithm that were real life applications of quantum computing that expedited processes that we care about. I was also invited to an event with Citadel where they invited former astronaut and US Air Force Colonel Dr. Cady Coleman to speak. She spoke about her experiences during her training, and how she was able to overcome her fears during her missions. I was also able to talk to many software engineers and former interns! I was in a few final rounds for external interviews I had gotten, and I got to ask for advice and talk to people that had gone through the process and come out on the other side. In general, I’ve never been in an environment where the majority in the room was female and so diverse. Even in classes at Waterloo or in high school, I’d always find myself being one of the few girls in a class composed of predominantly males. Going to Grace Hopper solidified the idea that there are so many other women+ in tech that are passionate about what they do, and continue to show it through giving back to the community!
-Star Xie, 2A Computer Science Student
I truly enjoyed my time at GHC! It was an amazing experience to see so many other women in technology gathered in the same place. Even so, there was a lot of diversity. People came from different backgrounds, including other states and countries. There was a great variety of majors, such as computer science, biomedical engineering, physics, and chemistry! Some people even switched fields with every degree that they were obtaining. What had the most impact on me was the conversations that I held with others. I learned a lot from their unique experiences, including their struggles and goals, and keeping the insights was truly worthwhile. There are no other words to describe the GHC experience than an immersive one. It is truly unforgettable. I give attending GHC my highest recommendation.
-3A Computer Science Student
This past September I got the opportunity to attend the Grace Hopper 2022 Conference. This was the first time after COVID-19 that the conference had been brought back in person. It was really exciting to meet other people from my program / similar programs and attend this conference together. A lot of us weren’t super sure what the conference would be like and didn’t really know what to expect when we got there. Read more
- 2B Computational Math Student
I signed up for GHC 2022 largely out of curiousity – for what networking in industry feels like, for what paths there may be tech, and of course, for a trip down to Orlando. However, I walked away with much more, as GHC turned into a pivotal experience of both my 2B term and my undergrad here at the University of Waterloo.
GHC was my first glimpse into how vast the tech industry is. I spent my days talking to companies and listening in to keynotes and workshops, and my evenings at company dinners and exploring snippets of Orlando. A lot of these memories are blurring together now, but what I’ll always carry are the relationships I’ve built. Read more
- Amy Li, 2B Computer Science Student