Computing

What We Do Hero Image: Students working on computers with employer helping.

The Break Through Tech Computing Program is focused on casting a wide net to encourage students to enter the tech academic pipeline and ensuring that they feel empowered and prepared as they move through their academic journey and launch their tech careers.

Break Through Tech Computing Programs are offered at partner institutions and are currently located in New York City at the City University of New York (CUNY), Chicago at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC), DC Metro Area at University of Maryland College Park and George Mason University, and Miami at Florida International University (FIU).

The Computing Program has two foundational programs as well as activities that are unique to each partner university in curriculum innovation, career access, and community building.

Foundational programs — Guild and Sprinternships™ — are offered at each partner university to increase access to computing majors and careers in tech.  Additionally, partner universities innovate their curriculum in a way that both removes administrative and academic barriers to achieving gender equality in tech as well as designs career readiness activities that prepare students to get their first work experience in tech. A focus on community building gives students opportunities to collaborate with their peers and professional women in tech.

Sprinternships™

These quick and immersive paid internships target students early on in their computing studies, providing work experience and a tech-industry résumé credential that can help them land their first tech internship. Sprinternships™ are designed by the organizations that host them, so each experience is unique. All Sprinternships™ are built around several common features: Tackling a real business challenge while immersed in a host company’s culture; Strengthening a professional network and connections in the tech community; Working in a team of peers to help build collaboration skills and confidence.

If you’re a business or organization interested in hosting Sprinterns™, join one of our Info Sessions to learn more and connect with our site directors. 

Register for an Employer Sprinternship™ Info Session

Guild

The Guild Program is a low-risk, high-reward chance to explore tech. In one to two weeks, students will gain hands-on experience tackling a real-life challenge tailored relevant to themselves or their communities, with the help and support of tech professionals.  Guild is a free and low-risk way to for students to build community and explore if tech is a good fit — no prior experience necessary.

Interested in working with us on the Computing Program?

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Pivotal Ventures, Cognizant Foundation, and Verizon logos

Our Funders

Break Through Tech’s Computing Program is funded by Melinda French Gates’ company Pivotal Ventures, the Cognizant Foundation, and Verizon.

Afifa Nadeem

I think this opened the door to me exploring a career on the network and system-design side of computer engineering. Break Through Tech has a really good program. It’s very helpful for all the women pursuing an engineering career. I encourage all computer science and computer engineering majors to take advantage of this program.

Afifa Nadeem she/her
UIC Student and Break Through Tech Alumna
Read about Afifa's experience