WiSE Program Overview

The Women in Science and Engineering Program (WiSE) at Brown University has a 15-year history of promoting women’s study and careers in science, engineering, and mathematics.  The program currently serves approximately 600 undergraduate students.  More than 50 science faculty participate annually in programs sponsored by WiSE.

WiSE provides students, particularly women and under-represented minorities, with the information and encouragement they may need to stay in the sciences, succeed, and go on to science- and engineering-related work and graduate study.  Our events offer a wide variety of resources and support, including individual and group academic support, formal and informal advising and mentoring, career exploration and planning information, access to conferences and professional meetings, and collegial opportunities. 

Led by Professors Sheila Blumstein and David Targan, faculty, students, and administrators at Brown University founded the WiSE Program to support women in the sciences, mathematics, and engineering.

WiSE works toward creating a sense of community of and for women in the sciences at Brown University. We address the challenges women face both in the science classroom and upon entering the workforce as scientists. On Brown's campus, we encourage undergraduates to pursue and continue their studies in the sciences. In the community, we bring information and excitement about the sciences to students in Providence schools and after-school programs.

The goals of the WiSE Program are three fold:

1.  Increase numbers of women in the sciences by holding events and providing speakers to generate interest in the sciences.
2.  Encourage retention of women in academics and the sciences
3.  Provide forums and resources to discuss ideas and issues affecting women in scientific careers.

Events organized to pursue these goals are run for the most part by the Program Coordinator and ten Student Coordinators assigned by the Dean's office, each Academic Year.