ESET, a global digital security company, is thrilled to announce that Nasreen M, from Mississauga, and Anushka K, from Calgary, have been selected as the winners of ESET Canada's Second Annual Women in Cybersecurity Scholarship.

Designed to help address the underrepresentation of women in the cybersecurity field, the Annual Women in Cybersecurity Scholarship grants $5,000 to an outstanding graduate/undergraduate woman majoring in a STEM field of study. ESET Canada expanded the program for 2022 to make room for two winners.

Nasreen

Nasreen M, from Mississauga, Ontario, is an early high school graduate, and plans to attend Queen's University in the fall, pursuing a Bachelor of Computing. In addition to maintaining excellent academic standards throughout her high-school career, Nasreen founded a Girls' Cybersecurity Club in order to recruit and encourage her female peers to learn more about cybersecurity and participate in a National Girls Go CyberStart competition.

"Providing girls like myself a chance to gain skills in a growing area that could assist them in the future has been a highlight," Nasreen says. "My goal is to drive progress in the world by building applications that are inclusive and cater to everyone, not just majority groups. I also want to work on services that already exist to increase security while also making them more inclusive."

Anushka

Anushka K, from Calgary, Alberta, is a third year student at the University of Alberta, completing a Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering. A recipient of the University of Alberta Dean's Research Award, co-president of the STEM Fellowship, co-founder of a peer-to-peer rental start-up, and creator of an app that helps improve the technology that Alzheimer's patients use, Anushka has dedicated her free time to taking her computer engineering skills and knowledge for the betterment of society, by focusing on problems that affect her peers the most.

"A sense of passion to solve the problems around me has driven me to pursue an education in STEM," Anushka says. "My business learnings have allowed me to develop a keen awareness to the importance of cybersecurity when evaluating the vulnerabilities that protrude during the development of my online business and other application productions. I want to contribute to the community around me by solving challenges and building connections whether that is through applications, my volunteering commitments, or sharing my knowledge with others."

Embodying a passion for cybersecurity

"Anushka and Nasreen's submissions reflect the values we were looking for when selecting our candidates. Not only do they have a passion for STEM and cybersecurity, they're already embodying what it is to be a conduit of progress in a world of technology," said Celeste Blodgett, vice president of human resources at ESET.

"We received a number of impressive and highly qualified applicants this year, and at the end of the day, the winners' confidence, passion for the sciences, and their ability to turn dreams into reality is what solidified the selection process."

Applicants were asked to complete an essay and include a letter of recommendation. More information on the qualifying process can be found on the ESET website. In Canada, students can pursue a cybersecurity education at colleges and universities across the country.

The 2023 ESET Women in Cybersecurity Scholarship is open now for applications! Interested in STEM and cybersecurity? Apply before the April 5, 2023 deadline!