Julie Wang’s dream is to become a product marketer at an innovative, fast-moving tech company — one that also is focused on positive social impact. This New Face of Tech winner is a student at Washington University in St. Louis, where she’s majoring in marketing with minors in business analytics and design.”For the past two years, I’ve been working extremely hard to break into tech and it has often been difficult without access to networking conferences, mentors, and resources needed for the field,” she says. “With this grant, all of that and more will become possible, opening the doors to so many opportunities for my career.”

What does being the New Face of Tech mean to you?

Growing up, I haven’t had a lot of women in tech to look up to and learn from. Being the New Face of Tech is a tremendous honor because I feel like I will be able to serve as a role model for other girls like me who are passionate about tech and use this award as motivation to give back to my community.

Women are underrepresented in STEAM. How can we change this?

Representation matters. We need more women in executive-level positions at leading tech companies and we need to start advocating for their success today. At a more local level, we can change this by providing more educational resources, professional mentorship, and skills-building tools for young women so they can maximize their potential for success.

What are some of the challenges you have faced along the way?

I’ve never had a lot of exposure to the martech [marketing technology] field growing up. And, in college, I felt like I had no option but to pursue a traditional path in business — either consulting or banking. When I finally decided to pursue product marketing, I didn’t know where to start with finding mentors or getting the right internship. It took a lot of independent research, cold-calling, and grant applications to finally find the resources and support I needed to break into a field I once knew so little about.

How do you stay motivated and focused on your goals?

I stay motivated by reminding myself of the sacrifices my parents have made to support me and my personal growth my whole life. My goal is to make them proud no matter what, and part of accomplishing that goal comes with persistent hard work and ambition.

How will funding from the 1,000 Dreams Fund and HARMAN help you reach your goals?

With this funding, I’ll be able to apply for exclusive conferences and events in the product marketing/tech industry that will give me exposure to the right people, ideas, and skills I need to succeed in the field. I’ll also be able to invest more time into learning new technical skills, such as Excel VBA, Tableau, and more, to become a stronger product marketer.