Media releases

Following the success of Ballarat Tech School’s flagship Girls in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) program, the inaugural Boys in STEM program has been launched. 

Like Girls in STEM, Boys in STEM will comprise 60 especially selected Year 8 and 9 students from over 14 partner schools across the greater Ballarat region including from Ararat, Beaufort, Daylesford, and Lake Bolac.  

Students will attend Ballarat Tech School, located at Federation University’s SMB Campus, two days per term to participate in specialised learning days where they’ll network with likeminded students from other schools, explore STEM study and the diversity of career choices, and expand their STEM knowledge through activities and excursions in a focused and supported environment.  

The programs will also provide students with opportunities to see how their classroom learning is connected to real-world work by meeting mentors, working with professionals, and visiting local industry workplaces where STEM skills are used daily. Mars Wrigley, Victorian Space Science Education Centre, Victorian Unmanned Aerial Systems are amongst this years’ industry partners. 

Both programs are open and inclusive of gender diverse students who are encouraged to choose the program that best suits them. 

The Boys in STEM program recognises that boys may be just as uncertain about STEM opportunities as girls, also need opportunities to meet others like themselves and create a network, and should likewise be actively encouraged to seek out STEM subjects. 

In 2025 The Ballarat Tech School will introduce STEM Academies, which will be specific targeted subject streams with industry rich experiences. The Academies will not be gender specific.  

Quotes attributable to Ballarat Tech School Pathways and Partnerships Manager, Kirstyn Hall 

“Years 8 and 9 can be a tough time for boys. Emotional and behavioural challenges can result in marginalization at school which can extend to the classroom, where encouraging boys to pursue STEM subjects hasn’t been given the same recent emphasis as engaging girls in STEM.” 

“Over the last few years, emphasising STEM for girls has become more common, and for good reason. They’ve been left out more often than boys in the past and not always encouraged to push through when something in this field doesn’t come naturally. Boys, on the other hand, are not usually given the same push to actively seek out STEM subjects. They may do it on their own, but they may not. The boys of today are not responsible for the gender disparity in the workplace, yet they are often paying the price.”  

“If we aren’t engaging all students in STEM classes, it can impact their further education and career choices and may not lead them to pursue the most in-demand careers today and in the future. This is a problem not just for the boys but for everyone. Boys make up at least half the active work force, if they are not encouraged and supported to engage with STEM and lean into the jobs of the future we will and in fact already do have a significant skills shortage in Australia. We need our Boys in STEM just like we need our Girls in STEM.”