Kaitlin Loeffler-White, 8 March, 2023
For current Bachelor of Business (Management)/Bachelor of Engineering (Mechatronics) (Honours) student Sarah Eisenmenger, plucking the courage to join an all-boys STEM club proved to be a life-changing venture.
Sarah felt apprehensive when her teacher suggested she join her school's robotics club in year nine. However, with encouragement from Sarah's mum and teachers, she rustled up the courage to become the first and only female member.
"You can imagine how out of place I felt, and at that moment, the figures I had read online regarding the gender gap in STEM became all too true,” she said.
"I realised I never wanted another girl to feel the same way.
“I wanted opportunities in STEM to reach beyond the bias, break boundaries and smash stereotypes".
In response to her experience, Sarah founded Zest Robotics, a Sunshine Coast-based business dedicated to increasing STEM confidence in young girls and changing the conversation around women in STEM.
"Studying business and engineering at QUT has allowed me to grow my business beyond what I thought was possible,” she continued.
"It has opened so many doors for my career.
“It has given me double the networking opportunities, and majoring in management has given me insight into how to effectively and efficiently run a team to deliver content.
“It's also taught me how to give constructive feedback and create connections with colleagues."
Sarah says she's had countless opportunities throughout her degree to connect directly with industry. "Students have been invited to present assessment pieces before Deloitte consultants who have created tangible employment opportunities within the classroom," she said.
In addition to her studies and business, Sarah is involved in a range of programs and initiatives run by QUT Entrepreneurship that aim to develop important professional and interpersonal skills.
2021 Budding Entrepreneur Scholarship recipients Sarah Eisenmenger, Jessica Carlile, Elise Berry (pictured with Professor Rowena Barrett, second from right) started in Semester 1 2021, and Coby Lee Davis.
In 2022, she was awarded a QUT Budding Entrepreneur Scholarship. Scholarship recipients are provided financial support, a dedicated mentor and the opportunity to pursue their entrepreneurial passion through access to unique support and learning experiences.
Since founding Zest Robotics in 2019, Sarah has delivered over 100 STEM and robotics workshops to thousands of young girls across Queensland.
"At Zest Robotics, we aren't just about robotics,” she stated.
"Our aim is to empower young minds by providing them with the knowledge, skills, and confidence necessary to become tomorrow's leaders, engineers, and scientists.
“We're about equipping young minds with the knowledge, skills and confidence that tomorrow's leaders, engineers and scientists need.
“We're about girl power and supporting the achievements of each other.
“We're making a change, one girl at a time.
Sarah has delivered over 100 STEM and robotics workshops to young people since 2019.
"My motivation has always been to inspire others, especially young girls.
“I endeavour to be a tangible role model to the students of my local communities."
Sarah shared that the 2021 Young Australian of the Year, Marita Cheng, has greatly inspired her.
"I had the opportunity to meet Marita in 2018 during Brisbane's National Science Week while attending the STEM Girl Power Camp”, she said.
“During this time, I had been experiencing first-hand the severe lack of female-identifying people in STEM.
“After talking with Marita, I felt more comfortable taking the first steps in founding Zest Robotics."
Sarah hopes to one day broaden Zest Robotics' reach beyond her local community.
"In the future, I'd love to expand the Zest Robotics team to broaden our reach beyond Southeast Queensland ,” she said.
“I'd also love to create online education content to create more accessible education for those we cannot yet reach".
