About STEM Girl Day

Presented by Women in STEM (WiSTEM) at The University of Texas at Austin, STEM Girl Day at UT Austin is a FREE, hands-on STEM outreach experience for K-8th-grade students and their families, educators, and other adults.

Since its launch in 2002 as Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day, the event has grown from an initial 92 participants to serving over 10,000 students each year. Over the program's life, we’ve welcomed more than 100,000 K-8th-grade students, supported by thousands of volunteers and STEM role models. As part of UT Austin’s outreach and recruitment efforts, STEM Girl Day serves as an early pathway for students to explore higher education opportunities and future careers in STEM. Through engaging demonstrations, hands-on challenges, and campus experiences, we aim to ignite curiosity and confidence in STEM for all students.

While the event’s name honors its beginnings as Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day, STEM Girl Day is open to every K-8th-grade student. Our focus is on expanding access to STEM, creating unlimited opportunities for exploration, building community partnerships, and opening pathways for future learners. STEM Girl Day is part of a broader STEM celebration season, aligning with the Texas Science Festival, Engineers Week in February, Texas Girls in STEM Day (March 1 as designated by the Texas Legislature, reflecting a statewide commitment to inspiring the next generation of innovators), and World Engineering Day (March 4). These observances highlight the importance of removing barriers to STEM and showcasing that every student has a place in science, technology, engineering, and math.

Visit the STEM Girl Day Media and News webpage for more information, stories, photos, videos, and flyers about STEM Girl Day at UT Austin.

One alumna, Victoria Ibarra, first joined as a 10-year-old at what was then “Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day”. That early exposure helped shape her path into engineering; today, she returns as a volunteer, hoping to inspire more students to see themselves as future innovators.

Check out our Flickr album with photos from #UTSTEMGirlDay in 2025

Other UT Austin STEM Programs

Find other UT Austin STEM programs on the STEM Starts webpage. 

At the University of Texas at Austin, we help nurture the next generation of STEM leaders by providing high-quality educational opportunities for children and adolescents from preschool through high school.

Our faculty, staff, and students offer a wide range of high-quality STEM opportunities, including camps, classes, programs, tutoring, mentoring, professional development, curriculum development, conferences, and more.

STEM Starts is a comprehensive collection of these opportunities, connecting families and educators with high-quality STEM resources and programming open to all students. We emphasize accessibility, curiosity, and opportunity at every grade level.