22 August 2007

Google success for Dundee student

A Dundee University computing student has secured a prestigious scholarship from internet giants Google to attend a major conference in Florida.

Yasmeen Ahmad (20), who is about to enter her fourth year studying for an Honours degree in BSc Applied Computing, won the coveted Google Global Community Scholarship, which attracts hundreds of applicants.

She will now attend the 2007 Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing Conference and Bridge Day Activities in Orlando in October.

"It is fantastic to receive this kind of help and recognition from a company as big as Google," said Yasmeen, who is from Dundee. "Apparently they get almost 1000 applicants for the scholarship so it is really good to be given one."

"I’m now really looking forward to the conference, which is a major event on the computing calendar."

The Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing 2007 is the seventh in a series of conferences designed to bring the research and career interests of women in computing to the forefront.

Presenters are leaders in their respective fields, representing industrial, academic and government communities. Leading researchers present their current work, while special sessions focus on the role of women in today's technology fields, including computer science, information technology, research and engineering.

Past Grace Hopper Celebrations have resulted in collaborative proposals, networking, mentoring, and increased visibility for the contributions of women in computing. This year's theme is "I Invent the Future".

More details about the conference can be found on the website: http://gracehopper.org/2007/

For media enquiries contact:
Roddy Isles
Head, Press Office
University of Dundee
Nethergate Dundee, DD1 4HN
TEL: 01382 384910
E-MAIL: r.isles@dundee.ac.uk