Winner of IT Girl of the Year 2014: "I want to thank my 16-year-old self for choosing nature"

The winner of IT Girl of the Year 2014 is Sofie Lindblom, a 24-year-old from Stockholm who is studying for a master's degree in media technology at Linköping University (LiU). In addition to her studies, Sofie organizes job fairs at her university, is a student ambassador for Spotify and blogs for Womengineer. She has also started a meet-up in Norrköping called Peking Hackers, for students and other young people who are curious about IT.

"I want to show how cool IT is, 'it' girls should want to be IT girls!" says Sofie Lindblom.

"I think many girls don't realize how many fun, cool and creative areas they are missing out on when they opt out of IT and technology education. I don't want more talented girls to miss out on these opportunities, and I think many employers in Sweden would agree with me," says Sofie.

The IT Girl of the Year is an award created by Microsoft in partnership with Universum to encourage and inspire girls to enter the IT industry.

The award was presented tonight at the Universum Awards at Berns in Stockholm by Microsoft's Therese Thorstorp, with the following motivation:

"With a strong commitment, drive and enormous talent, the IT Girl of the Year 2014 fulfills the qualities sought. She is already actively working to encourage more girls to apply for IT and technology courses by breaking the stereotypical image of who an IT girl is. She, like Microsoft, sees a future where more women are needed in the industry to drive progress."

Sofie Lindblom's joy and enthusiasm over the win was unmistakable. "I would like to thank my 16-year-old self who chose nature in high school, and therefore had the opportunity to choose a technical education at university, and now has so many incredible opportunities. It's a great feeling that nothing is impossible," says Sofie.

Microsoft presents the IT Girl of the Year award for the eleventh time, to a female student who is enterprising and who inspires other girls to apply for an education and an industry with endless opportunities. In addition to the honor, the prize includes a year of ambassadorship for IT girls in Sweden. In addition, the winner is awarded a travel grant to a technology conference, membership of a network, and a Windows Phone.

After a rigorous screening of all applications received, eight candidates were selected, all of whom, in addition to good academic results, demonstrated genuine passion and commitment to IT and its opportunities.

During a full day at Microsoft, they were challenged with case solving, interviews and mingling with Microsoft employees, which then resulted in three finalists.

The winner faced stiff competition from the other two well-qualified finalists Amanda Pethrus and Sarah Bernelind, both from the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm.

Published on Microsoft News Blog, 2014-03-06, opens in new window.