Students and industry come together at Women in Tech conference

On Saturday, October 11, a group of students from the Tufts Women in Computer Science (WiCS) student group welcomed nearly 300 students of all backgrounds from more than 35 universities. The Ninth Annual Women in Tech (WIT) Conference, organized by a dedicated team of more than 30 student leaders, offered a full day of inspiring talks, technical insights, and hands-on career development opportunities.

This year’s executive co-chairs, Ruby Mora (A26) and Rindha Reddy (E27), led a five-committee planning team that spent months shaping the conference experience, from interactive workshops to community-building events leading up to the big day. “Fostering a healthy team environment is crucial to our success,” Mora reflected. “These moments of connection remind us that great achievements start with great teams.”

In the weeks before the conference, the WiT team organized site visits, professional development sessions, and team bonding events to prepare both logistically and creatively. One highlight was a visit to wearable biometric company WHOOP, Gold Sponsor for 2025, where students learned about the company’s culture and met with current employees. Additional experiences included a workshop with LinkedIn Senior Software Engineer Zubin Chopra and community-building sessions that strengthened collaboration within the team.

Inspiring keynotes and industry insights

The conference opened with a keynote address from Dr. Kristin Austin, Vice President of Culture and Community Impact at Rewriting the Code, a nonprofit organization. Speaking to a packed auditorium, Dr. Austin encouraged attendees to embrace vulnerability, lead with authenticity, and trust in their ability to grow – messages that resonated throughout the conference.

Attendees had their pick of a wide range of sessions, including panels, résumé reviews, mock interviews, and a WiT-themed trivia game. More than 20 speakers participated, representing organizations such as Google, Microsoft, HubSpot, and several startups and nonprofits. Students also connected with entrepreneurs, investors, and Tufts alumni who shared candid stories about navigating their fields and charting unconventional career paths. “There was such a strong sense of community at the conference,” said Reddy. “Seeing speakers, sponsors, and attendees unite around a shared passion was truly special.”

As the day came to a close, the sense of momentum and purpose was palpable. The Ninth Annual Women in Tech Conference underscored WiT’s mission to empower emerging technologists by bringing together students, professionals, and advocates committed to driving equity, innovation, and belonging in the industry.

Acknowledgements

Committee leadership included co-chairs for Marketing (Marie Cisse, E26, and Olivia Ribeiro, E27), Logistics (Elinor Rosen, A26, and Patricia Clemente, A26), Programming (Toki Zhumadil, E28, and Begüm Ugurlu, A27), Finance (Alejandra Sabater, A27, and Arden Velenchik, E26), and Design (Summer Peterson, A28, and Andie Cabochan, A28).

The 2025 Women in Tech Conference was made possible through the generous support of the following sponsors: WHOOP, InterSystems, athenahealth, Recorded Future, Zagaran, Akamai Technologies, ServiceNow, Dynatrace, Klaviyo, Elyxor, Hudson River Trading, Rewriting the Code, and UKG.  

The WiT 2025 Planning Team extends its heartfelt thanks to the Tufts Computer Science Department, with special appreciation to Assistant Teaching Professor Elyse Cornwall, Grants and Budget Coordinator Ellen Quirk, Undergraduate Program Coordinator Rebecca Curran, Department Manager Sarah Richmond, and Assistant Manager at Conference and Event Services Zuzana Dworkin for their guidance and unwavering support throughout the planning process.

Learn more about the event at www.tuftswit.com or watch the WiT 2025 Conference Highlight Reel, filmed and produced by Raffaella Vogt (A26). Photos by Dominic Matos (A26).

Interested in becoming a sponsor or volunteering for next year? Please contact the WiT committee at womenintech.tufts@gmail.com or follow the Instagram account @tuftswit for more information about the Fall 2026 conference.