nytimes.com — Only about 28% of computer science bachelor degrees go to women in the U.S. With increasing demand for computer scientists in the United States in colleges are trying to turn to alternative measures to woo women into the field.
Apr 17, 2007 View in Crawl 4
deehanApr 18, 2007
Consider saying this to your daughter, assuming you could ever actually get it up to breed.
mrkiteApr 18, 2007
Aww, aren't you nice. Dude, who the f**k said anything about contributing? This article is about trying to persuade women into taking a career that they're not even remotely interested in.
l33tmasterApr 18, 2007
Seriously, 28% isn't that bad. Look at Electrical Engineering. It's less than 5%. :(Getting more women isn't going to solve the problem. The problem is simply that too many people in America have embedded in their minds negative stereotypes about Computer Science, whether it's too hard of a subject or that the people in it are losers, etc. And quite frankly I'd have to blame the schools. In my high school, we were required 4 years of English and 3 years of history, but only two years of science, and only one semester of Keyboarding (and this requirement was removed after my freshman year). There's absolutely no emphasis on logic and critical thinking, two very important parts of Computer Science / Engineering. Add the stereotypes and i'm not surprised so many people rush towards the humanities and away from computer science.One more thing to add: Don't ever fix your computer illiterate friends' computers. Teach them once and never again.
davidroolsApr 18, 2007
Can they make an effort to woo HOT women into CS, please?
goatmonkey2112Apr 18, 2007
Maybe if Prada started making computer cases, Gucci started making keyboards and mice, but you would still have to remind them that Mac is not just a lipstick company.
drmangrumApr 18, 2007
Why do we need more CS students at all? Male or female, most come out of college without a lick of coding knowledge. There are way too many CS grads out there already who drag down the pay scale as it is. We don't need more people who are only slightly interested in the field dragging it down further.And why the push for women to go into CS at all? It's their choice, they see it when they declare a major. News flash, COMPUTER SCIENCE IS NOT FOR EVERYONE! Even people who are intrigued with the discipline aren't well versed in it.In my experience there are 2 types of women who take to programming. Those who do their best and offer different ideas and solutions to a problem due to a different way of thinking and those who like float around acting like the damsel in distress getting others to do their work. Unfortunately, the latter far out number the former. Personally, I find this a sad state to be in. In a field dominated by men, we have become locked into like-minded solutions to complex problems. Those solutions may be the best, but sometimes they aren't. Women have a different way of viewing the world, and as such offer up some interesting solutions.
theonesteveApr 18, 2007
@mfhughes:"Hot" is relative. In some cultures a "hot" girl is one with an enormous posterior. In others a "hot" girl is the one with the best knees.Some cultures just want the girl to be obedient. In still others, no one cares what the girl looks like as long as she can bear crotch-droppings. So no, a hot girl to you is not necessarily a hot girl to me.
kreyonApr 18, 2007
I'm female and I love computers, programming, tech stuff, etc. but chose to major in engineering, and pursue CS topics as a hobby. I'm glad I did. To me, it seemed there were many more career options in engineering than there were in CS. And all the guys (and gals) I know in the IT department seem to be miserable! Engineers get private offices, IT guys get cubicles. No offense, just an observation.
wileepeyoteApr 19, 2007
...meant to add...You are assuming that all women in CS have been offered or accepted this type of program.
wooteryAug 1, 2007
Artificially trying to achieve diversity through positive-discrimination, however, is not a Good Thing.
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