Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) Helps Bring Women to Computing Fields

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is no slouch when it comes to revenue and profit. According to The Verge, the company “made $4.6 billion in net income on $23.38 billion in revenue” in the fourth quarter of 2014.

Sounds good, right? There is always room for improvement. There is always room for a company like Microsoft to earn more money. But guess what? This isn’t all the company cares about.

For example, Microsoft has a strong commitment to helping increase the number of women in computing fields. For this reason, the company established the Graduate Women’s Scholarship.

According to an official Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) blog post, these scholarships are anything but small potatoes. Here is an excerpt from the piece:

“These scholarships offer vital support to female computing students during their second year of graduate studies: a US$15,000 stipend plus a US$2,000 travel and conference allowance—resources to help the recipients gain visibility in their departments, acquire mentorship, and cover the ever-growing cost of graduate programs.”

Ten women were fortunate enough to win a 2015 Microsoft Research Graduate Women’s Scholarship. These women come from schools all over the country, including but not limited to: Carnegie Mellon University, Cornell University, Harvard University, Georgia Institute of Technology, and University of California, Los Angeles.

That is Just the Start

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) doesn’t stop at the Research Graduate Women’s Scholarship. It also supports the NCWIT Academic Alliance Seed Fund. According to the company, this does the following:

“Provides U.S. academic institutions with funds (up to US $15,000 per project) to develop and implement initiatives for recruiting and retaining women in computer science and information technology fields of study.’

Microsoft is well aware that giving a woman a scholarship doesn’t mean it will have a direct impact on its company in the future. And it doesn’t care. The company is giving the scholarships as a way of advancing women in computing fields, even if it means all of them end up working for competing companies.

It is hard to find other tech companies that care as much about people and good causes as Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT). This scholarship for women proves this to be true once again.

Disclosure: none.