Why do more girls than boys drop out of
computer science? And are you one of them?
The Problem: Anyone who's been to a first course in computer science in high-school
knows the problem: girls seem to drop out of computer science at a
much higher rate than boys. For example, the typical gender ratio
is 50-50 in the first course, whereas it often drops down to
10-90 (10% girls) in the second computer science course.
Why?
Surveys and interviews seem to show two main reasons for the higher
drop out rate:
The first is that many girls are somewhat turned off or even
intimidated by the capacity of some boys to over-demonstrate their
"computer prowess". Endless conversations about irrelevant details
("Bet you don't know what the control-f4 key does") or on-line games
("I made it to grandmaster in DragonInquisitor in just five hours")
seem to send the message that computer science is meant for
those who care about these trivia or games or esoteric websites.
The second is that many girls imagine there's more to their lives
than staring at the screen all day. The thought that an entire career
will be spent "programming" appeals less to girls than boys, the
data shows.
Should these be sufficient reasons to drop out?
Let's take the two reasons one by one:
Yes, it's true that some boys are uber-geeks and prone to
displaying their supposed prowess.
However, a careful examination shows that such prowess has more
to do with odd facts about particular computers and little to do with
grades and real computer science.
Bottom-line: if your computer science grades are good, there's little
reason to be intimidated because you're doing well by the
standards that matter.
Yes, it's true that you can spend your life in front of
a screen if you want to. But the majority of computer science
graduates don't! While the first few years after a Bachelor's
degree may be spent programming (read: in front of a screen),
the majority move on to leadership positions, working in teams,
and other positions involving people-skills.
And there are entire careers built around the intersection
of computer science with some other discipline, such as biology or economics,
for example.
Yes, but won't I have to compete with the uber-geeks?
There are many parts to answering this question. First, there's
the fact that programming is a challenging skill to learn
but no more so than music or a foreign language. Therefore
it's going to take some time and patience. Second,
programming is just a part of the whole field of computer
science. Third, coursework is what matters.
Knowledge of trivia and display of prowess are
legitimate fun for some, but ultimately have little to do
with core computer science.
Fourth, while it may seem that your friends "get it"
more easily, the actual effort may be about the same
and the "difference" explained by the over-confidence
exhibited by some.
Fifth, there are various career paths through computer science.
A comparison with media careers may help: while it's
true that everyone must learn to write, not everyone becomes
a poet. There are script-writers, directors, photographers,
advertisers, stand-up comics etc - in short, a variety of
careers involving communication and media.
How many of these people would want to be judged by their
essay-writing or poetic ability?
What strategy do you advise? How can I know if Computer Science is
for me?
Focus on the fundamentals. Did you enjoy the computer
science material (even if you had to work at it)? Are your grades
good?
Avoid being intimidated. Learn to separate the irrelevant
(trivia, odd computer facts, games) from the relevant (coursework, grades).
Accept that there will always be those who seem to know-it-all
at this stage. Their apparent success need not mean your failure.
Accept that programming is a challenge. Because it's a skill
and a skill for which nothing in the past has prepared you,
it's going to take time. You can't learn swimming in a day,
nor music in a month, nor a foreign language in a year.
To take swimming as an example, you might remember that it took
a while to swim one lap. Now consider how much effort is required
to learn multiple stokes and, harder still, to continuously
train to be on the swim team.
In every "skill" category, some kids seem to "get it" faster than others,
but so what? Just ask the professionals: how many of them
were in the "instant success" category?
Beware of confidence problems. Is it getting you down?
Does the fact that you find something challenging, when others
might not, bother you? Again, research shows that boys tend
to be over-confident while girls tend to be under-confident
even while grades are about the same.
Work in a group. Find a group of like-minded girls, or even
boys, and work in a group. See if your teacher is willing to
provide group projects as part of the grade. For example,
you could build an interactive website as a team.
Consider the broader possibilities with computer science,
especially, the possibility of combining it with another field.
For example, bioinformatics is a field
that combines biology and computer science, and also is a route
to medical school.
Remember that many women have found rewarding and lucrative
careers in computer science. Why should you deny yourself such
opportunities for the wrong reasons?
