The Atlantic Technological University (ATU) in Ireland will be hosting a Built Environment Summer Camp for 12 to 14-year-old girls in June.
Described as the first of its kind in Ireland, the event will assist in raising awareness around careers in the construction and engineering sector, aiming to increase female participation in study and apprenticeships.
Attendees will experience a taste of project management and quantity surveying as well as civil, electrical and mechanical engineering through interactive activities.
The four-day camp runs in ATU’s Sligo campus from 16-19 June, from 10am-3pm, and will be delivered by female lecturers and role models.
Plans are under way to expand to other ATU campuses next year, including Galway and Donegal. Discussions are also under way with Technological University Dublin and Dundalk Institute of Technology to roll the model out on the east coast.
The initiative is also intended to link in with southern and midland universities next year in a bid to create a national series of camps.
Addressing misconceptions
The concept for the summer camp stems from a research paper by Lisa Brennan MCIOB, lecturer at ATU, which highlights major misconceptions among young females around careers in the construction and engineering industries.
“The industry is working hard to increase female participation at all levels and females are not choosing engineering and construction for several reasons, but unawareness appears to be a major setback,” Brennan told CM.
“Simply sowing the seed of the sector’s existence at an early age may encourage more females to pursue careers within the field.”
If any firms would like to support the expansion of the initiative in summer 2026 by offering female role models to visit a camp, or providing financial assistance, please email [email protected].
Find more information and registration details here.
