Targeted recruiting means planning strategically: set quantifiable goals; identify large, capable audiences; personalize the content of your message; deliver that message in media that are relevant to your audience; and pay attention to people who influence your audience’s decision-making. GESET annually introduces 1,200 middle school girls to the importance of STEM and IT education through hands-on activities and presentation of real-life applications of technology.

Engage students not already drawn to computing by creating academic and social environments where these students feel like they belong. Students respond positively to solving real-life problems that draw on their existing knowledge and interests and that involve collaboration in hands-on projects. Scratch is a free “media rich programming environment” in which novice programmers can quickly express their creativity while learning computational thinking.

By removing time and location constraints, e-mentoring allows women to connect with many more women than face-to-face mentoring permits. It can also promote more open mentor-protégé communication by limiting status differences. MentorNet is an online resource for women in engineering and science who seek one-on-one guidance from mentors in their respective fields. By providing mentors with online resources for training, coaching, and consulting, MentorNet provides positive structure for the mentor- protégé relationship. Both mentors and protégés report benefiting from the program.

Undergraduates with positive research experiences feel more confident and motivated to enter graduate programs. To facilitate successful REUs, supportive faculty advisors or graduate mentors should clearly communicate goals to students and allow them to spend a large amount of time on research, increasing independence as the project progresses. The Affinity Research Group model (ARG) integrates student participation in research teams and a structured cooperative learning environment.