women and cs, lessons learned from turkey - voices 2015
TRANSCRIPT
Women and CS: Lessons Learned from Turkey
Turkish Women in Computing (TWIC) Three Founding Ph.Ds in CS
Ümit Yalçınalp, Gökçen Çilingir, Gülüstan Doğan
Turkish Women in Computing
An Anita Borg Institute Community
Global Presence Independent (not tied to government, school,
company, sponsorship, etc.) Has Sister community @Facebook:
Golden Girls of Computer Science, 1981-86 female grads of Comp Eng & Sci Middle East Technical University, Turkey
Turkish Women In Computing was born to
Conquer cultural differences: Find/help/support in community through career stages
Embrace Global Opportunities: Unite CS graduates abroad & in Turkey
Enable recognition of members
In 2014 women in tech continued to be in the news…
5
Women in Tech News categories
“Pipeline Problem”
Declining Interest
Disparity in Universities and College Admissions (Harvey Mudd’s gains!)
Equal Pay, Meritocracy & Cultural Factors
Debate about Abilities and Differences between men and women
Retention
6
$ Pillars 4 Pillars of Changing the game for Women in CS
Entering in the field
Getting hired in the field
Being Inspired/Having necessary tools
Staying in the field
Global Perspectives are necessary
News are global
State of affairs are local
Don’t blindly accept what you hear!
Learn and Compare!
Thank you Global Tech Women for this platform
in Turkey, girls
Do excel in High School Science & Math and have confidence
Are attracted to undergrad degrees in CS and beyond (MS., Ph.D)
and the trend is Increasing
Summary of Our Presentation at Voices Conference in 2014!
10
Pipeline Problem in Turkey?
#sayWhat?
Proof? #checkitoutUS !!!
Why is it different?
Our Research on Getting into the Field
What is the status?
University admissions data
Why is it this way?
Prior Research
Our own survey in our community
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7452/10768099944_517989996c_d.jpg
Entering the Field
Nationwide Placement Exam
1.8 Million take the test in 2013!
Our Hypothesis were
National Exam as driver and equalizer
Economics and Hipness Factor
Prestige for Families/Community
Confidence is there in Women for pursuing the best
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Statistics from OSYM Placement Exam
0.00
0.08
0.16
0.24
0.32
0.40
1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
Female ratio in new admissions at Computer Science departments in Turkey (undergraduate)
USA vs. Turkey !
0.0
8.0
16.0
24.0
32.0
40.0
1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
Percentage of females pursuing CS undergraduate degrees
USA Turkey
Results from Last year…
Interest is increasing and steady
Applies to Grad degrees and Female Faculty too
More dropouts from men in grad degrees due to military service postponement
Encouraging Numbers for women in STEM
Mathematics and Statıstıcs ~60% !
Popularity(CS) > Popularity(Civil Eng.)
Popularity(CS) > Popularity(Mechanical Eng.)
Popularity(CS) < Popularity(Chemical Eng.)
Important Footnote
No extra intervention, school, advertisement, recruiting, mentoring tailored SPECIFICALLY toward women to achieve these results
How do we understand why?
Supporting Research*
Survey of 671 female students in top 6 Turkish universities
Investigates to find why women choose engineering
Covers STEM fields not only CS
* Smith, Alice E., and Berna Dengiz. "Women in engineering in Turkey–a large scale quantitative and qualitative examination." European Journal of Engineering Education 35.1 (2010): 45-57.
TwiCS survey
250+ Turkish women in CS
TWICs members + friends
Graduates of top universities
Small but indicative population of our own community
Art of Creating Surveys
Education researcher Hafize Sahin from Washington University was key
Short
Multilingual
Questions focused on
Interest and successes in high school
Influence of family, friends, environment
Choice of fields of study
Detailed profile and background (age, school, where you live)
Demographic
TWIC Survey Results support our hypothesis
Why did you decide to pursue a career in Computer Science?
I wasgood at
math andI was toldComputerSciencewould bea perfectcareer
choice forme.
Prestigious/credibledegree to
have.
I did notwant to
be adoctor.
It wasn't adeliberatechoice, I
chose themost
populardepartment that I
can get inwith myscore (at
theNationa…
Highprospectof finding
a wellpaying job
aftergraduatio
n
Myparentschose itfor me, Idid not.
Adviser/mentor
suggestion
Childhooddream
Provewomen
can workin thefield.
My parentsuggeste
d it, Iagreed.
Friendsuggestio
n
Participate in familybusiness
% 18.7 16.6 13.7 13.5 12.1 8.9 6.1 5.4 2.5 1.7 0.5 0.3
Favourite topics: Math & Science What were your favorite classes in high school?
MathChemistr
yPhysics Literature
Painting /Arts
History MusicGeograp
hy
PhysicalEducation (PE)
Biology
Ratios 32.1 20.1 14.6 8.8 5.8 4.3 4.3 3.7 3.7 2.5
0.0
5.0
10.0
15.0
20.0
25.0
30.0
35.0
Society Perception Impact
How does society see women computer engineers in Turkey?
It's a very prestigious
occupation for women.
36%
It is NOT a preferred
occupation for women.
12%
Women is considered inadequate
compared to man in this occupation.
47%
I don't know. 5%
Society Perception Impact It's a very
prestigious occupation for
women. 16%
It is NOT a preferred
occupation for women.
11%
Women is considered inadequate
compared to man in this occupation.
71%
I don't know. 2%
How does society see women computer engineers in Turkey? (age < 30)
It's a very prestigious
occupation for women.
53%
I don't know. 7%
Women is considered inadequate
compared to man in this occupation.
28%
It is NOT a preferred
occupation for women.
12% How does society see women computer engineers in Turkey? (age >= 30)
Childhood Perceptions Imposed by Society
Yes 13%
No 79%
I do not know / do not remember
8%
Do you think your parents or teachers believed that "boys are better at math/science subjects than girls" during your childhood?
Acceptance by Male Colleagues How often do you feel accepted by your male colleagues in the workplace or in school?
Sometimes 16%
Most of the time 50%
Rarely 6%
Always 25%
Never 3%
Feeling of Isolation How often do you feel lonely or isolated from other people at the workplace/school because of your gender?
Sometimes 21%
Rarely 35%
Most of the time 9%
Never 34%
Always 1%
Conclusion
Economics and Perceptions fuel the interest
Excelling in the national entrance exam encourages an Engineering or Medical School degree
No lack of confidence in Women
Positive reinforcement from high school fuels interest
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Last but not least Thanks!
Turkish Women In Computing community
OSYM for statistics
Dept. of Computer Engineering, Bilkent Uni Prof. Dr. Altay Guvenir & System Analyst Nazan Ceran Titrek
Dept. of Computer Engineering, METU Prof. Dr. Ferda Alpaslan
Golden Girls of Computer Science where a lot of these ideas have emerged via discussion