Boot Camps Introducing More Women To Tech (dice.com)

Nerval's Lobster writes: A new study from Course Report suggests that boot camps are introducing more women to the tech-employment pipeline. Data for the study came from 769 graduates from 43 qualifying coding schools (a.k.a. boot camps). Some 66 percent of those graduates reported landing a full-time job that hinged on skills learned at the boot camp. Although the typical "bootcamper" is 31 years old, with 7.6 years of work experience, relatively few had a job as a programmer before participating in a boot camp. Perhaps the most interesting data-point from Course Report, though, is that 36 percent of "bootcampers" are women, compared to 14.1 percent coming into the tech industry via undergraduate programs. Bringing more women and underrepresented groups into the tech industry is a stated goal of many companies. Over the past few years, these companies' diversity reports have bemoaned how engineering and leadership teams skew overwhelmingly white and male. Proposed strategies for the issue include adjusting how companies recruit new workers; boot camps could also quickly deepen the pool of potential employees with the right skills.

Comments

Re:All right!

[narcc]

It takes a special kind of person to see celebrating greater diversity as celebrating the decline of another group.

I don't understand it myself. What's wrong with increasing diversity? Is it that you feel threatened because you think you can't compete in the job market? Are you afraid of interacting women and minorities? You strongly imply that white males are being attacked or otherwise oppressed and that some unnamed other takes pleasure in causing that harm.

Do you remember that "pac-man" pie chart of religious affiliation in the US? The one where the largest piece is saying "help, we're being oppressed!"? Your comment reminds me of that.

It's really easy to be a Christian in the US. You're in the majority. There are even social benefits that come simply from self-identifying with that majority. Though, as many atheists know, there are also social consequences for those on the outside. The larger group benefits from something called "privilege".

I couched that in religious terms for your benefit. It's easy to see that Christians in the US are not, in fact, being oppressed and that they enjoy numerous social benefits. It's also easy to see why atheists often need to hide their beliefs to avoid discrimination or other harmful conflict. It should be simple to understand (and acknowledge) the concept of privilege in this context. That should bring us a step closer to understanding the privilege that straight white males enjoy. (If you're still having trouble, add additional characteristics like 'tall' and 'attractive'. Don't those guys surely have it easier that you? Why do you think that's the case?)

That brings us back to your post. Do you think that by elevating atheists we necessarily hurt the religious? Shouldn't they be just as free to express their views and Christians, without fear of social repercussions? Don't they deserve equal treatment and opportunity?

Are those atheist groups interested in oppressing Jews, Hindus, and other religious groups? Obviously not. For the most part, they just want a "safe space" where they can meet with others who share the same beliefs without facing the nasty social consequences they would otherwise. They want society as a whole to stop discriminating against them, and thus do community outreach. Inexplicably, some Christian groups see this as an assault. Doesn't that seem foolish? They're not under attack just because another groups doesn't want to suffer discrimination at their hands!

They shouldn't need to hide their atheism any more than a girl should need to hide her gender playing an online game as folks like you insist they should. They should be afforded safe spaces where they can focus on learning without the continual sexual comments, pick-ups, and challenges to the authenticity of their interest in the subject they face in a typical male-dominated classroom. Adding opportunities for others doesn't reduce your own opportunities any more than opening up an atheist club diminishes Christian churches.

In this case, it's even simpler than that. These aren't "for girls" boot camps. Women just feel more comfortable in these environments and thus are more likely to participate. This is reflected in the enrollment statistics. Yet, just because they're not behaving like you believe they should (by staying out of tech) you see this as an assault on white males. That is, the majority group. The Christians of the industry, if you will.

You're not being oppressed. No one is out to get you. You're terrified by a monster under your bed. It's time shine a flashlight under there and face reality. There's nothing there. It's all in your imagination.