Microsoft and IEEE Join Forces to Help the Next Generation of Engineers and Technology Professionals Succeed

REDMOND, Wash., Feb. 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Today, Microsoft Corp. and IEEE announced a collaboration to empower students to reach their professional aspirations. The goal of the Microsoft-IEEE collaboration is to increase the number of students engaged in technical pursuits with the long-term benefit of strengthening business and society through the use of technology.

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IEEE is the world's largest professional association with more than 395,000 members in 160 countries; its aim is to advance innovation and technological excellence for the betterment of the global community. The collaboration between the two organizations will equip IEEE members with access to Microsoft student programs and technology and expose the benefits of IEEE membership more broadly to science, technology and engineering students who are currently using Microsoft software and solutions.

"Engineers make tremendous contributions to society by creating technologies that drive global economic growth," said Walid Abu-Hadba, corporate vice president of the Developer & Platform Evangelism Group at Microsoft. "The Microsoft-IEEE collaboration will provide aspiring engineers around the world with tools and resources to convert their innovative thinking into marketplace innovation by equipping today's technical students for tomorrow's jobs."

To help students better reach their goals, Microsoft and IEEE will work together in several areas:

• Providing IEEE student members with access to the latest Microsoft servers, development tools and eLearning — with privileged access to more than 300 software titles as part of the MSDN Academic Alliance, a subscription service traditionally available only through educational institutions
• Exposing science, technology, engineering and math students to job opportunities with Microsoft partners and customers through the Microsoft Students to Business program
• Utilizing the IEEE network to help source high-profile judges for the eighth edition of Imagine Cup 2010 world finals taking place this summer in Warsaw, Poland. Imagine Cup is the world's premier student technology competition where the brightest young minds join together and, using technology, take on the toughest problems facing our world today.
• Creating awareness of IEEE among hundreds of thousands of Imagine Cup participants who are not already IEEE members

In addition, the two organizations will identify opportunities to increase awareness of important technology-related issues that affect the growth of the IT industry.

"IEEE's collaboration with Microsoft furthers our mutual efforts to provide students and young professionals in technology fields with resources and skills that will prepare them for the future," said Cecelia Jankowski, managing director, IEEE Member and Geographic Activities. "IEEE student members will benefit from access to free Microsoft software, training and opportunities to connect to the Microsoft community through speaker invitations, connections to Microsoft-sponsored student clubs, and increased access to internship and job opportunities.

"In addition, the participation of IEEE Fellows and other high-profile members in the Imagine Cup program supports our initiatives to highlight the contributions engineers and other technology professionals make to society worldwide," Jankowski said.

More information about the benefits and opportunities for technology students can be found on http://www.microsoft.com/students/ieee and http://www.ieee.org/students/Microsoft.

About IEEE

IEEE is the world's largest professional association advancing innovation and technological excellence for the benefit of humanity. Through its more than 395,000 members in 160 countries, IEEE is a leading authority on a wide variety of areas ranging from aerospace systems, computers and telecommunications to biomedical engineering, electric power and consumer electronics. Dedicated to the advancement of technology, IEEE publishes 30 percent of the world's literature in the electrical and electronics engineering and computer science fields, and has developed nearly 900 active industry standards. The organization annually sponsors more than 1000 conferences worldwide.

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

SOURCE Microsoft Corp.