February 2, 2024
This week, PreparationTech in collaboration with Rabobank hosted students from five high schools in Amsterdam and Almere at Rabobank HQ in Utrecht. Participating students from under-represented groups in tech (girls, racial and ethnic minority students and students from low-income families) learned how Rabobank is developing tech, keeping their customers' money and information safe, and hiring tech talent.
Part of what makes an impression on kids and teens is storytelling, especially when it’s done by diverse and inclusive role models. Thanks to Rabobank's team for sharing their personal stories about how they developed their careers in tech.
Some highlights of the week:
- a tour of the bank's public areas and in-house museum
- greeting the robot at the front entrance
- doing a short coding exercise
- workshops on topics including data and privacy, effective LinkedIn profiles and LEGO Serious Play
Many of the participating students are in year three of high school and have to choose their study concentration (profiel) at the end of this year. So imagine our happiness when several girls commented that they are now considering to choose 'Natuur en Technologie' ('Nature and Technology') which is a Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) concentration.
(PreparationTech has a strict ‘no phone’ policy during our activities, meaning high school students surrender their phones when they arrive at a company and only get them back at the end of the day when they are leaving. This creates more interaction (and horsing around) but this is what students need.)