If there is no WIE Affinity Group in your area, you can start one in your Section or Student Branch by recruiting six other IEEE Members willing to be part of the WIE Affinity Group and then submitting a petition.

Benefits Of Forming A WIE Affinity Group

How To Form A WIE Affinity Group

Forming an Affinity Group is the best way to interact and share information with others with similar interests in your local area. You may submit a petition to form two types of Affinity Group formations:

To Form An Affinity Group

  • Recruit six IEEE members willing to be part of the founding Affinity Group;
  • Select someone to be responsible for the Affinity Group until the first meeting is held and the Officers are formally appointed;
  • Obtain approval from your Section or Student Branch Executive Committee approval (an Affinity Group depends administratively and financially on the Section);

View the IEEE Geographic Unit Formation Policies and Petitions page for forms and information

Recruiting Volunteers For WIE Affinity Group

If you are interested in volunteering with IEEE WIE, the best place to get started is with your local WIE Affinity Group

IEEE Member and Geographic Activities (MGA) has a volunteer recruitment tool kit available. It has been developed to provide IEEE Units (Regions, Sections, Societies, Chapters, or Affinity Groups) with ideas for recruiting local IEEE members who may be interested in volunteering their time to help lead IEEE activities.

Planning successful meetings and events

Meetings and events are two of the most visible and valuable ways for an affinity group to serve its members.

Funding

There are two types of funding available to WIE Affinity Groups:

  • Initial Funding: newly formed WIE Affinity Groups are eligible to request up to US $200 in startup funding. This type of funding may be requested only once. Must be requested by the Group’s Chair.
  • Special Funding: established WIE Affinity Groups may request up to US $400 for special projects. A proposal must be submitted by the Group’s Chair at least three months prior to the event. The WIE Committee will review the proposal and make a decision at their next scheduled meeting.

Promotional Materials

WIE promotional items are available for WIE Affinity Group events and activities to bring visibility to IEEE Women in Engineering. Please request items at least three (3) weeks prior to your event. Please note that quantities are limited and items should be supplemental to your primary source of promotional/items for your event. Only one request per group per calendar year is permitted for an Affinity Group.

Free IEEE Webhosting

WIE Affinity Groups are encouraged to establish their own websites. Website hosting and templates are available to Affinity Groups and Student Branches through the IEEE Entity Web Hosting program.

WIE Affinity Group Management

Learn more about how to plan successful events for your Women in Engineering (WIE) Affinity Group, how to recruit volunteers, and how to complete the required reporting. If there is no WIE Affinity group in your area, you can apply to create a new group.

WIE Affinity Group Required Reporting

Affinity Groups are required to submit meeting, financial, and officer reports to IEEE MGA. Further information and report forms are available through IEEE Member and Geographic Activities.

Student Branch Affinity Groups should follow the reporting procedures required by their Student Branch Chapter.

Free Functional Email Alias For WIE Groups

A free IEEE email alias is available for WIE affinity groups. A functional alias is defined as a non-personal IEEE email alias that forwards to an individual. For example, scanner@ieee.org would forward messages to j.smith@yahoo.com or sb.mit@ieee.org, an MIT Student Branch alias which forwards to the Student Branch counselor.

Contribute To The WIE Newsletter

Become a WIE Newsletter contributor by submitting articles, profiles, videos, and images of your event. Visit the IEEE WIE exchange page Call for Contributions to learn more and submit content.

WIE Affinity Group Best Practices

IEEE WIE Affinity Groups can use these best practices to help plan their activities for the year.

  • Plan for the year: Hold your first meeting of the year and begin planning your yearly activities.
  • Welcome and Membership Drive: Organize a IEEE WIE welcome reception for new students and your campus community.
  • International Women’s Day: Celebrate March 8 (International Women’s Day) – host an event on campus and invite inspiring women to speak.
  • Women in Workshop: Connect with your local student society chapters and organize a technical activity such as “Women in …” Workshop.
  • Technical Visit: Promote a technical visit to a local industry site.
  • Plan an event to celebrate International Women in Engineering Day in June.
  • Female Entrepreneurship: Connect with your local student society chapters and Young Professional Affinity Group and organize a talk about Female Entrepreneurship.
  • Learn about the history of women in STEM: Encourage volunteers to read a book that addresses the theme “Women in STEM”, share the histories and promote a discussion about each history. Watch a movie on women in STEM.
  • Encourage young girls: Promote an IEEE WIE STAR based initiative with a local junior high and/or high schools.
  • Leadership Development: Connect with your local student society chapters and Young Professional Affinity Group organize a talk about Leadership Development for Women.
  • End-of-year meeting: Organize a group meeting to review activities conducted during the year and recognize volunteers.

Once your new group is formed, you may use these resources to help manage your group.