Where are the women in
technology?
Technology continues to grow, continues to
provide, and continues to innovate the world around in so many ways, you
couldn't begin to list them all. Even now, kids are learning the beginning
aspects of creating and even selling their product and software ideas and
getting the jump on the rest of us adults still trying to wrap their heads
around how a tablet works.
And leading the charge are...men. Mostly.
Why is that?
Is it because women don't like technology?
The social media platforms would disagree, as large number of women use
Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google+, and more on a daily basis. Is that we
don't understand technology? That doesn't seem to be the case when speaking of
Ada Lovelace, Jean Bartik, or Adm.
Grace Hopper - you know, three of the most pioneering women in
technology. Not to mention Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer, Wikimedia Foundation
executive director Sue Gardner, or Virginia Rometty, the president and CEO of
IBM.
Tech is still a boy's club, but it's been
increasing becoming an open field, especially for woman and with several men
backing us up in the endeavor. So, if you're interested in learning about tech
and getting a degree, where do you go?
Let's just talk to those potential college
students, who might also be professional, working moms. So you want to learn
about networking
technology by getting an online IT degree; maybe you think you
could organize your work environment's infrastructure or maybe you want to
understand how one virus on one computer could morph onto the others. Maybe
you're just curious about all this fuss over wires and wireless and mobile
technologies; either way, you're opening a door to a grand history and a life
changing course.
Going Back to School
Maybe you already have a degree in something
else or perhaps you started college way, way, way back in the day and never
finished for whatever reason. College isn't just for graduated high school
students - more and more professional adults are returning
to school for whatever reason, making the classroom more diverse
with people of all ages. This is the same with online schooling as well, mixing
ages, background, and countries to bring about more communication and understanding.
Online schooling offers a flexibility that
brick and mortar schools don't - for one, there's no conflict when it comes to
trying to attend class and work a full time job. Because you can take classes
from anywhere, you can schedule class time when you feel like it - maybe your
mornings are the perfect time to watch one or more video lectures; maybe after
the kids heads to bed is the best time for you.
Maybe the weekend, when everyone is doing
their own thing is the greatest; whenever and wherever, you have access to
class, as long as you have an Internet connection.
Your Own Pace
Another great thing is the ability to set
your own pace. Many online courses have video lectures, which can be watched
over and over, making sure you understand the concepts of the module. Some
classes can be skipped - maybe you already know how to set up a home network or
how to connect wirelessly; skip that section and go on.
Will a Business Take an Online IT Degree?
This is probably the number one consideration
on whether to get a degree online or go to the more traditional school. The
funny thing is, while the rest of the world has combined the two, the business
world is very much stuck in the 'you need to be surrounded with people in order
to be social'.
Luckily, many universities and colleges see
this and have opened their own online courses, which can either be taken
independently or combined with classes on campus. Your degree will still come
from a major institution and businesses won't know that you primarily were
online.
One Big Leap for Women
Maybe you aren't considering an IT degree
because you want to start your own tech company, but the fact that you're
considering and will eventually have a shiny tech degree is nothing to laugh
at. You'll be entering a field that's trying to grow, as well as opening the
doors for others. One of the hardships with getting women in IT is that,
there's very few of them to teach girls that being in IT doesn't mean you live
in your mother's basement or you can spout PI to the nearest hundredth.
If your daughter or niece or their friends
see you studying and understanding how the wires in the computer or laptop
work, they'll be impressed. More impressive is when your daughter shows up her
male classmates or teachers with her knowledge; that's a big confidence boost
and may make her think maybe there's something to this technology thing after
all.
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