Why More Women Should Consider a Career in Computer Programming

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 by: V. Berba Velasco Jr., Ph.D.

Everyone knows that computer programming is a heavily
male-dominated field. I think this is unfortunate. Over the years, I've
come to conclude that there is a great deal that women can contribute
to this field.

Why is computer programming regarded as a primarily
masculine discipline? I think that in part, it's because men have a
reputation for being more likely to tinker around with gadgets and
gizmos. In part, it's also because computer science is supposedly a
very math-oriented field, and men are supposedly more inclined toward
mathematical disciplines.

(Incidentally, I know that such generalizations would
offend certain people. I'd like to emphasize that this is not my intent
at all, nor do I wish to make excessively broad generalizations about
either gender. However, a multitude of psychological studies do claim
that men have-on the average-a greater aptitude for mathematics and
mechanics than women do, whereas women tend to perform better at
linguistics and communication. These tendencies coincide well with my
own observations, so for now, I'll assume that these studies are
reasonable descriptions of gender differences.)

Anyway, people often claim that men make better
programmers because they are more mathematically inclined. Personally,
I disagree. It is true that computer science is very much mathematical
in nature; however, computer programming often is not. It's true that a
software developer should understand basic concepts such as binary
computations, round-off error and Boolean logic; however, for most
programming tasks, there is little need for calculus, group theory or
other advanced mathematical topics. For this reason, I think that the
importance of a strong mathematical aptitude is largely overblown.

Indeed, I think that linguistic skill is decidedly more
important. I'd say that in years past, about 90% of the programmers
that I encountered produced sloppy code-software that is clumsily
structured, poorly documented and difficult to understand. I've also
noticed a strong correlation between linguistic skill and the ability
to generate clean, legible code. And why not? Computer languages are,
after all, just that-languages. It's thus reasonable to expect that
someone with a strong language aptitude will-on the average-produce
cleaner, more understandable code than someone whose language skills
are lackluster.

That is one reason why I wish more women would pursue a
programming career. If it is indeed true that women have better
language skills, then they are likely to perform well with computer
languages as well. Again, this jibes well with my own experiences. I
haven't known many female programmers, but most of the ones that I do
know have produced some rather outstanding work. (To be fair, I've also
known some lousy female programmers; however, these individuals had
little passion for their field, and only entered it for the sake of a
paycheck. That's a pretty good recipe for mediocrity, regardless of
one's gender.)

Breaking into this field may not be easy. I'm sure that
many women will have to combat the prejudiced notion that software
development is a man's field, and that female programmers are mere
dilettantes. Still, it is my earnest hope that more women will make
their marks in this arena. If they have the right passion for this
field, and if they understand their strengths, then I believe that they
have much to offer.

About the Author

V. Berba Velasco Jr., Ph.D. is a senior electrical and software engineer at Cellular Technology Ltd (http://www.immunospot.com, http://www.elispot-analyzers.de, http://www.elispot.cn). He is proud to serve in a team where the importance of clean, high-quality programming is understood by all.

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