Maria
Kelesidou
Technology Engineering Graduate at Lloyds Banking Group
Nominated in the categories:
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Maria Kelesidou Bio (LinkedIn)
Maria Kelesidou is a Graduate Penetration Tester at Lloyds Banking Group and the winner of the Rising Star Award at the Women in Tech Awards 2026. A first-generation university student, she graduated with First-Class Honours in Computer Science from the University of Sheffield before transitioning from software engineering into offensive cyber security, conducting authorised web application penetration testing at one of the UK's largest financial institutions. Beyond her technical role, Maria is a registered STEM Ambassador, a Girlguiding volunteer, an elected Charity Representative for graduates and apprentices across Manchester and Chester, and a mentor to students and early-career professionals from underrepresented backgrounds. She has spent her entire career working to ensure that women and underrepresented people have a clearer, more supported path into technology than she did — because as a first-generation student, she had to find her own way. Previously President of the Society of Women in Computer Science at the University of Sheffield, she organised industry networking events and judged hackathons to create visible female role models. She holds two Cisco CCNA certifications, is enrolled on the CISSP training programme through Lloyds Banking Group, and is actively pursuing the Hack The Box Web Exploitation Specialist certification.