Women in computing
Rohit Khare (khare@pest.w3.org)
Wed, 3 Apr 96 22:21:23 -0500
> The gender disparities in computer science are all the
> more striking because the field has had the reputation
> of being open. Women have been part of the field since
> its inception (see "_The First 'Computers'_"), and quickly
> joined the rush to earn computer science degrees in the
> 1970s and '80s, when many departments were first
> established. In 1976, 1124 women earned undergrad degrees
> in the field; a decade later, the number had jumped to
> 14,431. But in recent years, while other fields have seen
> a slow but steady increase in diversity, the percentage
> of computer science degrees awarded to women has actually
> declined by 5%, and the percentage of female Ph.D.s has
> also slumped (see chart). NSF data on underrepresented
> minorities show little improvement.
> [In 1988], only two African Americans of either sex were
> awarded Ph.D.s in computer science, and only 56 women of
> all races.
From: http://sci.aaas.org/nextwave/print/minorities/computer.html