Why and How I Encourage Young Women to Pursue Careers in Technology

Technology has an appearance problem, and most of us are familiar with it. When confronted with a possible career in computing, girls imagine the figure of a lone male in an obscure corner of some office, pecking away in front of a black screen with long columns of white letters. Girls don’t consider it an appearance problem; they think of it as reality. This is a view that does not make them want to gleefully rush into a computer science class.

Of course, this is a false perception of computer programing, and one that has lasted with stubborn persistence. The negative result of this is a shortage of women majoring in computer science in college and consequently a shortage of women in all of the STEM (Science Technology Engineering Math) fields. Without the input of the thousands of innovative and creative women in our workplace, our society is not performing at its highest potential. That’s like going through life with one hand tied behind your back.

In high school, girls receive better math (and across the board) grades compared to boys, and the gap keeps growing. However, boys outnumber girls in computer science in college 82% to 17%. This disparity translates directly to the workforce. Approximately 30% of the 7 million people working in technology are women. The industry is growing, especially in the data analytics and cybersecurity fields. The demand for these high paying jobs outpaces the people trained to hold these positions. If we were able to increase the number of women in the STEM fields, we’ll be able to close this gap. But as it stands, many companies are struggling to meet their goals with a depleted workforce.

The exact reason for this is fleeting, however as with most problems, there are a number of factors feeding into the issue. Some think the problem stems from societal treatment of girls at an early age, such as the decisions of toys and job possibilities that is presented to girls. Efforts are being made, such as gender-neutral clothing and an introduction to symbols in clothing patterns such as math and ninja motifs in girls’ fashion. But we may be missing the real root of the problem. There is a problem with perception, as stated above, but there are also myths about boys being better in math. Add the “pink-ification” of girls at an early age and the map is being drawn with different road signs for boys and girls that lead them on two separate paths as they maneuver from elementary school through high school.

I know that technology can be fun, exciting, challenging and very rewarding, just as many other technology professionals know. But in order to attract more females in my technology classes, I point to the purposeful use of technology by demonstrating how they can use technology to solve problems in their community. I teach girls object oriented programing, introduce them to technology professionals and cultivate mentorships with professional women working in the technology industry.

This method is in addition to introducing girls to computing at an early age. The best practice is to outline a purpose of why they are computing in the first place. Computing with a purpose will increase their interest in, and desire to pursue computer science, information technology, and cybersecurity courses. This can increase the number of girls pursuing post technology careers. The overriding goal is to increase confidence and abilities by using technology to engage girls in real world problem solving. This approach will expose the them to the many unexpected benefits that technology provides to society. Computing with a purpose will emphasize the purposeful human applications of computer science. Through comprehensive technology summer programs, road show outreaches, field trips and professional mentorships, computing with a purpose will also increase participation of other underrepresented groups to ensure a more diverse workplace in the computer science field.

By challenging girls to use technology to solve problems they can see and understand, they will become more interested and engaged by knowing there’s and end product at the conclusion of their efforts. Everything they do up until that moment becomes more meaningful.

What I’m suggesting does not come from books, or stuffy academic research, but from inside the trenches of the educational system. This empirical knowledge has enabled me to increase the numbers of girls that enroll in my computer classes, field one of the first competitive all-girl cyber security teams in the state, and produce one of the highest number of NCWIT (National Center for Women in Technology) student awardees in the state. It’s through these efforts I know that the numbers will continue to increase and mitigate the projected shortfall of technology professionals in general and female technology professionals in particular. This effort starts early and requires a bunch of cohorts in the community to help it work on a very large scale. But with a strong will, we can make this work and help close the gap between jobs and the talented people needed to fill them.