Programming as an Option for Females in Undergraduate Studies

A gender gap exists in undergraduate studies of different careers related to technology. Previous research investigated differences among gender in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) careers and other investigated what influences females to choose a career in computer science. Therefore, an exploratory study was conducted to examine high school student’s perceptions about a technology career in Puerto Rico. The participants on this study were students in different private and public high schools in Puerto Rico, specifically sophomores, juniors and seniors’ females. A sample (n) of 26 female students answered a questionnaire after attending an introductory programming workshop. All of the participants considered the programming workshop as a good experience and they would be interested in attending, and also recommend other girls to attend, future programming events. Results suggest that the highest influence for them to pursue undergraduate studies on a technology program comes from female teachers, mother, and male teachers.