Posted by Kristina Cowan
Some important people think IT careers need a makeover.
Microsoft is touting them to young women, as is the European Union, which earlier this year announced plans to make IT careers more appealing to women. According to eWeek.com:
The second annual DigiGirlz event, held on March 26 in Islandia, N.Y., was attended by more than 150 11th grade girls from seven schools on Long Island. Presenters from all walks of IT gave presentations on career planning and job roles in areas from law to health care, the public sector and security companies. Women at the top of the field doled out unconventional career advice to girls in the hopes of dispelling the notion that one must be a geek to work with technology.
By squashing IT's 'geeky' image and giving it a sexier sheen, the logic goes, more women will be drawn to it, helping stave off a shortage of workers.
According to the National Center for Women & Information Technology, 1 million computer and information-related jobs are expected to be added to the U.S. workforce by 2014, but U.S. universities will only graduate enough candidates with computer science bachelor’s degrees to fill 50 percent of those jobs.
Where are the rest of the qualified candidates going to come from? Since women only account for 26 percent of tech workers, according to NCWIT, could the untapped female population help meet the projected shortfall of workers?
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