Conference Connections
A Legacy of Conference Connections
SWE’s conferences have created opportunities for members to make meaningful professional and personal connections with women engineers around the world. Attendance has grown, from 112 at the first convention in 1951 to more than 20,000 participants in person and online at WE24.
Explore SWE's Legacy Below
Support Our Legacy
In honor of our diamond anniversary, consider making a donation to the new SWE Legacy Endowed Scholarship this year in support of SWE’s ongoing mission. It can and will make all the difference.
Featured Merch
Showcase items such as commemorative shirts, pins, and other branded items celebrating the anniversary.
SWE’s early national conventions provided social support, professional development, and networking opportunities for members accustomed to being the only woman engineer in the room.
To help members connect with employers, SWE launched its first career fair in 1979 with 76 recruiters.
To reach more members, the Society’s 10 U.S. regions hosted regional conferences from the 1980s through 2017, when they were replaced by WE Local.
The Puerto Rico Section hosted SWE’s first conference outside the contiguous United States in 1988. SWE has returned overseas in the past decade with annual conferences in Europe and India.
Now hybrid, the annual conference provides more opportunities for members to participate, whether attending in person or online.
