"Some of my male classmates would ask why girls were in my app creators class if they would never be smart enough to be interested in it. There were only about 4 female students in a class of 30 students. It really made me feel spiteful. The positive side was this experience ignited my drive to learn about this field even more, and I never gave up. Some of those male students even ended up getting a lower grade than me."
-Sophie Apolaya, High School Student
"I realized there are a lot of roles relating to computer science that require less math and include creativity when I learned about the different fields."
-Ahana Roy, College Student
"I think the fact that the world has begun to revolve around the tech industry made me realize that computer science is a lot more than just sitting in cubicles and writing code. There are so many careers within the field, along with some really creative jobs involved too. In conclusion, I realized that there is so much more to CS than just web dev & software engineering; and with each day, there's new careers popping in. Computer science isn't the same anymore!"
-Zoha Rizwan, College Student
"I faced imposter syndrome because of gender stereotypes; however, in CS, I was able to mix it with design and win a hackathon with a group of girls that became my friends!"
-Anonymous, College Student
"I was around 7 years old and was asked what my favorite class was by someone close to me. I told them I loved computers. They told me that was "lame" and implied it wasn't for girls. For a long time after that, I didn't bother to consider CS as a career path, despite still heavily enjoying computer class. Honestly, I fooled myself into thinking I had no interests whatsoever, despite the CLEAR interest in CS. Eventually, I did some soul-searching during the pandemic and realized I'd been lying to myself all along because I was too afraid to go against what that person said. Today, I happily embrace my passion for CS and am always eager to learn more."
-Wardiyah Rammazy, High School Student
"I think most of my negative experiences have been surrounding the imposter syndrome you feel as a minority in computer science. Experiencing the feeling of being one of very few girls in a classroom or having less of a CS background than your peers takes some time to push through. However, the best part has been the community of women in CS and the support from teachers. Having supportive friends who are going through the same experiences makes the journey easier."
-Jackie Roche, College Student
"After doing Kode With Klossy, I was really excited to see how cool and fun coding could be. I mostly thought that coding was boring and totally un-creative, but after I was surrounded by a bunch of really supporting and passionate people, I found out how coding is more than just “coding.” Coding is so interdisciplinary and such a wide field."
-Hannah Kim, High School Student
"One positive experience is my freshman year of high school. The school offers freshman girls a Women in Engineering class, it’s the same as any Intro to Engineering class, however, you must be female/identify as female to join. There were about 20 girls in that class. It was by far the most fun."
-Anonymous, High School Student
"Some of my most positive experiences as a woman in computer science include participating in camps that strived to empower women and encourage them to follow the STEM path. These were the main spaces in which I felt more sure of my capabilities to learn CS. However, my actual CS classes at school are male-dominated: thus, although I’ve never experienced any direct gender discrimination, I often hear misogynistic remarks made by the men in my classes."
-Phoebe Franklin, High School Student
"When I attended a CS club in 8th grade. I was the only girl and did not feel welcomed at all by my peers and the teacher. However, during a Kode With Klossy web development camp, it was inspiring and empowering to be surrounded by ambitious women like me who were eager to use code to solve problems."
-Mahi Rahti, High School Student
"Some negative experiences that I have had are in various computer science classes. I often find that my male classmates like to either focus on the main work, and push others to the side to do the design or similar generally creative aspects, or take credit for things they did not do. Some positive experiences I have had have been in the same classes. I have made many friends and learned lots of new things about the world of computer science. Thankfully, it’s becoming more common to see women and gender nonconforming individuals in computer science, so I am also feeling more like I belong."
-Shivali Sharma, High School Student
"So far I haven’t had any problems being a woman in STEM. I believe it gives me more opportunities because the world wants more women in this male-dominated field."
-Paranita Singh, High School Student
"I was able to find a community of other people like me that enjoy computer science and let me be as creative as I can be!"
-Anonymous, College Student
"After taking AP Computer Science Principles, I discovered a little bit of what computer science was really about. Not to say that AP classes are a good representation of what the real world is like, but it gave me elementary insight into what CS actually was."
-Alyssa Chung, High School Student
"I became passionate about engineering for a variety of reasons. The main thing I love about engineering is the possibility it holds. As an engineer, you're actively innovating and creating impactful, long term solutions to real-world problems."
-Anonymous, High School Student
