A Reboot in Recruiting Women Into Computer Science; Chronicle of Higher Education, 10/29/12

Ben Gose, Chronicle of Higher Education; A Reboot in Recruiting Women Into Computer Science: "Experts on the gender gap in computer science have increasingly come to believe that a multipronged strategy is needed to close it. The tactics would include the following: •More-diverse programming activities, to seize the interest of middle-school girls, in the same way that role-playing video games are embraced by boys. •A revamped introductory course, whether taken in college or as an Advanced Placement course in high school, to provide a broad overview of the real-world applications of computer science. •Early exposure to research projects during the first year of college. (Ms. Lamm was paired with her mentor, Mr. Gray, during her first month at Alabama.) •Opportunities for undergraduates to interact with women who have enjoyed successful careers in technology.... Some computer-science departments are venturing elsewhere on their campuses to make a pitch for their major. At Indiana University at Bloomington, for example, the nursing program is so popular that even students with strong grades sometimes don't gain admission. The university's School of Informatics and Computing encourages those women to consider majoring in informatics, or "the application of information technology to the arts, sciences, and professions." Informatics majors can choose to earn the equivalent of a minor in health, setting them up for a quick path to a nursing degree after graduation, should they choose. "We're always looking for strategic ways to interest people in coming into the program," says Maureen Biggers, assistant dean for diversity and education. The number of women majoring in informatics at Indiana has doubled within two years, to 150 students, or 18 percent of all the majors."