A group of 16 Lehigh students traveled to Cambridge, Massachusetts, in February to attend the 2025 Harvard Women Engineers Code (WECode) Conference—an event recognized as the world’s largest student-run women-in-tech gathering.
Organized annually by Harvard University undergraduates, WECode draws hundreds of participants from around the globe for a weekend of keynote talks, career panels, and mentorship and networking opportunities with industry leaders. This year’s Lehigh cohort included one graduate student, two juniors, three sophomores, and ten first-year students—many of whom were attending a tech conference for the first time.
Diya Pandey ’27, a computer science major in Lehigh’s College of Arts and Sciences and executive board member of Lehigh’s Girls Who Code College Loop, served as a returning Tech Fellow for the event alongside Sophia Chen ’27, a computer science and business major in the Rossin College. Together, they led trip logistics and coordination—organizing pre-conference info sessions, securing full funding, and arranging travel and lodging to make the experience accessible to all 16 participants.
“We knew the financial barrier could prevent some students from attending,” says Pandey. “So we worked with Lehigh’s College of Engineering, President’s Office, and Student Opportunity Fund to secure funding that allowed every interested student to participate.”
The group traveled together by chartered bus from Lehigh to Boston and took part in the full weekend of programming. Sessions covered a range of topics—from AI and software engineering to entrepreneurship and social impact in tech.
“As a woman in CS, I deliberately chose a women-focused conference because I wanted that first experience to feel approachable,” says Chen. “I really enjoyed the welcoming space and the ambitious energy of the diverse set of women unapologetically passionate about technology. That’s why I returned in 2025 as a Tech Fellow—I wanted to help create that same warm feeling for others.”
One of her most memorable moments was the Career Workshop Panel with speaker Xue Hua, a software engineer at Microsoft. “Her passion and drive were incredibly inspirational,” Chen says. “Even though everything was far from perfect, she showed how you can carve out your place in the tech world while staying true to your values and happiness.”
Pandey, too, found both the sessions and the mentorship circle valuable. “A former Tesla software engineer, now at Microsoft, led a session on how to network logically and authentically—especially as an international student navigating this space,” she says. “It helped me uniquely perceive my career path, embracing the unique background as strengths rather than barriers.”
As a conference attendee last year, says Pandey, “I had no idea what I wanted to pursue as a career in the future and often felt overwhelmed. But after WECode, I realized how many pathways exist within computer science, and how supportive and huge the community of Women in Tech truly is. After this, I’ve been more confident about pursuing those opportunities.”
Chen adds: “Seeing senior engineers who not only looked like me but also came from similar backgrounds really expanded my vision of what’s possible.”
Tech Fellow socials gave participants opportunities to connect with peers from other universities across the country. Attendees noted that the experience helped them build relationships with mentors and recruiters, and gave them a clearer view of the diverse career paths available in tech.
“We were excited to see that more than half of our group were students attending a tech conference for the first time,” Pandey says. “It gave them a clearer idea of what’s possible—and showed them they aren’t alone in figuring it all out.”
The trip was supported by the P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science, the Lehigh University Student Opportunity Fund, and additional scholarship opportunities provided by WECode organizers.
—Safwan Hoque ’26 is a student writer for the P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science
