The fine folks at Sony Online Entertainment were kind enough to invite the Destructoid crew out to a  GDC after-hours shindig here in San Francisco to celebrate the establishment of the new SOE G.I.R.L. scholarship. The Gamers In Real Life scholarship partners with The Art institutes to encourage and promote the development of games that are more interesting for women to play.

SOE created this program in response to findings from a survey they conducted on women and videogames. This survey showed that 61% of female students surveyed believe that male dominance in the games industry is a deterrent to women pursuing a career in the industry. Also, almost half of those surveyed said that they'd like to see women portrayed as leaders in games.

"It's no secret to female gamers: Women are out there in significant numbers, playing MMOs, action games, first-person shooters, etc. What is lacking in the equation are women behind these games and we hope GIRL can help support this program," said Torrie Dorrell, Senior Vice President of Global Sales and Marketing, Sony Online Entertainment.

"SOE's program is a key component of our GIRL initiative because the scholarship will be the gateway for one student into this field of expertise; I invite other publishers to join us in supporting this initiative."

This scholarship offers $10,000 to any student (male or female) attending any Art Institutes school.  Applicants are required to submit an in-game design, concept art, and two essays before March 31st of this year.  

SOE also showed off hot new footage of The Agency at this event. The G.I.R.L. team is involved in the development of this upcoming MMO.