First published Dec. 9, 2022 in Stories Beneath the Shell.
by Morgan Leason and Joel Lev-Tov
More than three-quarters of the University of Maryland Computer Science Department’s undergraduate students are men.
“It feels like everyone will think you’re dumb,” said Arwen Ferro, a female sophomore computer science major. “Men in the department act like women can’t complain about their assignments because it will be ‘easier’ for them to get a job. And that’s not really the conversation,” Ferro said.
Sophomore computer science major Ariel Monson has heard that as well.
“I’m working just as hard or maybe even harder than they are, and that kind of puts me down,” she said.
Mansplaining is expected in group work, said Sharon Oh, a sophomore computer science major, and Monson said men loom large over class discussions as well.
“I feel like guys are just more likely to speak up in class or raise their hand, especially in these huge lecture halls where people don’t vicariously speak up or ask anything,” Monson said.
This is called brogrammer culture, in which stereotypes about women create an unwelcoming environment in the tech industry and contribute to the smaller percentage of women in computing. Women make up 22% of the department, which is slightly better than the national average of 20%.
Not only is there a lack of female students, but there is also a lack of female professors. Ferro has no female professors this semester. Only 10 of the department’s faculty members are female, and only one woman teaches a class below the 400-level, according to the department.
“That upsets me a lot,” said Maya Pollack, a sophomore computer science major. “I wish that I had someone to look up to.”
Oh said she wanted to have someone who looks like her in the male-dominated industry.
“I guess that’s what I’m looking for, just a sense of connectedness and inclusivity,” Oh said.
The department is aware of the problem, it seems. An external report commissioned by the department found the number of women lacking. A copy was leaked to Stories Beneath the Shell and the report’s key points were confirmed by the department. Stories Beneath the Shell attempted to obtain a copy via the Maryland Public Information Act, but the request was denied. The publication is appealing the decision.
“The current state of faculty and instructors is embarrassingly non-diverse,” the report states, misstating the number of women who teach in the department. “Diversity across all ranks is urgently needed.”
The authors of the report did not respond to emails requesting comments.
Pollack, who had several female computer science teachers in high school, said she believes more women would study computer science if there were more women teaching.
Mihai Pop, the director of the Computer Science Department, did not seem surprised by the data or the stories.
“I know what the general people talk about,” Pop said. “If you’re surrounded by people just like you, it is very hard for you to actually recognize that other people might not have the same experiences.”
Pop said his department is working “very hard” to recruit women and “underrepresented minorities” to the department. The department said it has gained three female full-time faculty members.
But the change isn’t happening fast enough, Pop conceded. In the last 10 years, the amount of women in computer science has increased from 14% to 22.5%, university data shows.
“There’s two parts,” Pop said of his strategy. “One is obviously trying to bring more women into the field, but the other part is letting the majority group know what impact they have on others.”
Part of that is creating a code of conduct for the students. The department is working on adopting a code of conduct that Pop claims will foster a more inclusive environment for women.
“We expect people to behave in a way that’s actually collegial and supportive, just creating that environment that everybody who comes in would feel welcome,” Pop said.
The diversity initiative
The department’s greatest tool in fostering inclusivity is the Iribe Initiative for Inclusion and Diversity in Computing, which creates a comforting space for marginalized communities in computing, and hosts over 150 outreach events annually, the initiative’s 2022 annual report stated.
Kate Atchison is the associate director of the initiative.
“My goal is: how do I make sure that if you’re in a computing class, you have the best experience? That you know what you want to do that you feel like you can succeed,” Atchison said.
One result is the Rising Stars Program in the Center for Machine Learning.
“This program invites students from other universities, who so far have been primarily women, to come to give presentations,” Pop said. “In the process, they will do some mock interviews with them to help them prepare for academic careers.”
The program received funding from Pivotal Ventures, which focuses on gender equity across computing, through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in March 2021.
Atchison was hired in March 2016 as the first full-time hire in the Iribe Center for Inclusion and Diversity in Computing. She used her expertise to try and create an inclusive environment for women in the major.
“We hired TAs, we hired more staff, we added tutoring, we added mentoring, we expanded some of our summer offerings and then Brendan Iribe gave us some initial funding to grow the program,” Atchison said.
Atchison’s program centered around women soon grew in its scope to make computer science a more accessible and welcoming major for all underrepresented groups. Significant progress was made during the pandemic, when online accessibility was a must, Atchison said. She and her team created virtual summer programs and tutoring, and a Slack channel with more than 1,200 students.
Still, the report criticized the department for failing to prioritize and see progress in improving diversity, equity, and inclusion. Rather than having the entire department concentrate on this issue, efforts to create a more inclusive environment are left to staff — not faculty members, who are mainly focused on research.
For now, the reality for women in the computer science department remains bleak.
“This isn’t something you want to see at your school,” Monson said. “You’d want to see them supporting more women in the field and trying to get professors to help motivate the female students,” Monson said.
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