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DE BEERS GROUP SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENT SPENDS SUMMER AT GAHCHO KUÉ MINE

07 Aug 2019

For Kayla McNeely, one of six University of Calgary recipients of a De Beers Group scholarship for women, a summer job at one of the company’s diamond mines has provided greater insight into environmental science and new skills that will help her in the future.

McNeely is a student in the Faculty of Science at the university.

Starting in June, McNeely began two-week rotations as an environmental monitor at Gahcho Kué Mine, located 280 km northeast of Yellowknife in Canada’s Northwest Territories.

“Receiving the scholarship from De Beers was very encouraging,” said McNeely. “It showed me the possibilities that could become available in the future. “I think that university has done a good job of teaching me the theoretical knowledge, but (the summer job has provided) the hands-on experience to make me employable.”

While at Gahcho Kué, she worked as part of the mine’s environmental team, helping to collect water samples, seeing muskox on the tundra near the mine, and participating in a variety of monitoring programs.

“I got to experience a lot of new things that I believe will really help me in the future,” she said.

Each De Beers Group/UN Women scholarship is worth USD$7,000 and are aimed at removing barriers to women in the fields of Science, Engineering, Technology and Mathematics (STEM).

McNeely used her scholarship to support her enrolment in an environmental sciences program for the 2018/2019 school year.

As a global #HeForShe champion of UN Women, De Beers Group committed USD$600,000 over three years to support scholarships and other opportunities to encourage women to pursue education in STEM, an area traditionally dominated by men.

The scholarship program provides funding for a total of 67 years of education for Canadian women. Six first-year entrance scholarships were awarded at the University of Calgary in September 2018 and six more will be awarded this fall. Applications for the UofC scholarships close August 1.

In addition, six entrance scholarships each worth USD$7,000 will be awarded to women entering STEM programs at the University of Waterloo in September 2019. Another nine scholarships worth USD$4,800 each will be awarded to Canadian women entering STEM or STEM-like programs through Scholarships Canada this fall. Applications for the Waterloo and Scholarships Canada programs closed in May.