More than 250 Grade 9 female students gathered Wednesday at Scotiabank Place to learn about the rewards of a career in technology.

In honour of International Women's Day, Canadian Information Processing Society (CIPS) presented "Women in Technology", which is an annual national program with local events in major cities across Canada.

Organizers say the event is designed to bring together local businesswomen from a variety of technology fields to share their experiences and encourage students to consider a career in technology. The women attending also discussed the importance of math and science throughout high school and serve as role models for their young audience.

"This event will provide an educational and inspirational program that focuses on the benefits of a career in IT for women," says the group.

In Ottawa, the students from 17 local high schools, along with their teachers, participated in the three-and-a-half hour event at Scotiabank Place. The program featured speakers from the local IT community and federal government, including a panel discussion involving Moyra McDill from Carleton University, Sylvie Bissonnette, a designer from Fuel Industries, and Sandra Saric from the Software Human Resource Council. Emily Jones, a release engineer at Magmic, Ella Mar, the senior vice-president of operations at Espial Group Inc., and Karina Roman, a CBC reporter, also participated.

The day's schedule ended with a lunch hour including a "mentor table talk" involving representatives from the event's many sponsors, including IBM, Telesat, Robert Half, Carleton University and Teksystems.