Written by: Darius Loong Yek Dong
In a world where technology continues to shape our future, it’s empowering to see more young women stepping into the spotlight and driving change in the IT sector. At the recent annual CYS YouthxHack held at Temasek Polytechnic (TP), participants showcased not only their technical skills but also their commitment to solving pressing social issues. Their experiences as women in tech illuminated the challenges they face while offering hope for a more inclusive future.
As young women in tech, Vijeyakumar Dakshaa, 17, a Year 1 student at Singapore Polytechnic (SP) pursuing a diploma in Applied AI, and Lee Sing Jia, 18, a Year 1 student in Cybersecurity at Ngee Ann Polytechnic (NP) are well aware of the challenges of entering a male-dominated field. Both reflected on the progress they’ve seen, as well as the stereotypes they continue to face.
“There were only two girls in my coding class in secondary school, and now there are five in my class,” said Dakshaa, expressing optimism about the growing number of female students interested in technology.
However, discrimination still exists.
Shared Dakshaa: “When I tell people I’m studying tech, they often don’t think a girl can be in this field, it’s still a stereotype.”
Sing Jia agreed, noting that while the tech industry has historically been male-dominated, more girls joining the field could lead to groundbreaking innovations.
“There’s a woman behind every creation. If more girls join tech, there will be more ideas, different from the guys and that’s a good thing.”
Despite the challenges and stereotypes they faced, they joined the competition to develop their coding skills while gaining experience in the way they approached problem statements and solutions. Sing Jia also saw it as a way to productively spend her holiday and meet people in the same industry as her.
For the hackathon, the two decided to tackle a social problem statement focusing on social defence: “How can we use technology to enable vulnerable groups to overcome language or physical barriers to access community networks, increasing and improving social interactions, especially during a crisis to empower them?”
Their innovative idea centred around a notification system that would deliver news, events, and security alerts categorised by language.
“We wanted to create something that would help people communicate more easily with others who speak the same language,” said Dakshaa. To further enhance community participation, they implemented a points-based system where users could earn grocery vouchers by attending events.
They also placed a great focus on inclusivity through a mapping solution for wheelchair-accessible routes.
“We wanted to solve everyday challenges faced by people with mobility issues,” Sing Jia shared. Their idea aimed to provide practical support for individuals who rely on accessible paths to move through public spaces.
Dakshaa and Sing Jia were not alone in their efforts. Other pitches from mostly-female teams also stood out. One team created an app called vConnect that included community forums to bring communities closer through a virtual platform as the elderly and disabled, who can have a hard time travelling out of their houses are left out. In-chat translation features were also suggested to allow neighbours that speak different languages to overcome language barriers to increase and improve their social interactions. Other proposals included a suggestion to improve on the Fridge Restock Community by offering an online food delivery service run by volunteers to help those with mobility issues.
Though the hackathon had more male participants than female ones, the presence of teams like the winners of the digital defence theme, which consists of mostly females, is a positive sign.
Competitions such as this, along with partnerships with the community, academia, and IT industry such as the SG Women in Tech movement has allowed for Singapore to have about 40% of our tech professionals being women, well above the global average of 28%.
“More girls are interested in tech, and that’s a good thing. But we still need to see more,” said Dakshaa. As they continue to grow their skills and challenge stereotypes, these young women are not just participants in a hackathon—they are role models and changemakers, demonstrating the value of diverse voices in technology.
As more girls pursue careers in STEM, they are paving the way for future generations to dream bigger, push boundaries, and innovate in ways that reflect the diversity of our world. Their message to others is clear: don’t let stereotypes hold you back—there is a place for women in tech, and the future is brighter because of it.
