The Women’s Hackathon, devoted entirely to female students, faculty and professionals,will be held October 9-11 at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism in Los Angeles. MediaShift is co-host of the event aimed at cracking the gender gap that persists in both journalism and technology. Early-bird registration ends this Friday, September 4.

The hackathon will focus on immersive journalism and VR and will include a crash course in virtual reality gear such as Oculus Rift and Google Cardboard. Female college students from the region and around the country will work with women faculty and professionals in “dream teams” to collaborate on content, design, technology and business.

The International Women’s Media Foundation (IWMF) and West Virginia University’s Reed College of Media are sponsors of second annual Women’s Hackathon. The first was held last year at WVU.

Early bird registration, which ends September 4, is $49 for students and $99 for faculty and professionals. Rates thereafter will go up to $79 for students and $129 for faculty and professionals. The fee includes breakfast, lunch and dinner on Saturday, and breakfast and lunch on Sunday. Register at Evitebrite.

Thanks to the Ford Foundation, there are 10 travel scholarships of $500 each to offer to female students who cannot afford travel to Los Angeles. Please apply here for a travel scholarship by September 4. Note: This does not cover the cost of registration.