The Decline of Women in Computer Science

Striking graph. Having been there at the time, I'd propose roughly the same explanation she does, though in less loaded terms. The decline starts about 5-6 years after microcomputers became widely available. Assuming 4 years to graduate, that means the decline in women CS majors begins almost exactly at the time kids started to be able to hack in HS.<p>Up till 1980 or so, CS was like other engineering disciplines in that it was something most students started to learn in college. Few students arrive in college already proficient in mechanical engineering. But starting in the early 80s, students started to arrive who were already proficient (or at least, experienced) in programming. These kids were self-selected, and they were almost exclusively boys.

"Today, in terms of numbers, women have outpaced men in biological and agricultural sciences"<p>Then why not equal concern about men falling behind in these sciences, as for women not keeping pace in computer science degrees?

In many countries, such as India, there is actually a rise in women in Computer Science, probably more to do with the fact that in most cases they start off on an equal footing to boys in terms of exposure to computers pre-college and secondly due to the lucrative (in relative terms) job prospects and non-manual nature of the work.<p>The trends there seem to be following the early trends of the graph here (but in a more condensed timeframe), and it will be interesting to see how it continues.

I chalk this one up to the anti-intellectual barbie doll culture here in the U.S. There are plenty of girls studying computer science and engineering in Asia, for example, where academics are valued over sports and fashion attire.