Just ask! Why surveyed women did not pursue IT courses or careers

Abstract

Persistent gender differences in the choice of college majors in technical fields account for a substantial share of the gender wage gap among college graduates. While there are many theories about what college students are thinking when they make their college major and career choices, most are based on speculation or indirect evidence. This survey turned up several points on which students were surprisingly unconcerned. Very few students (and equal proportions of men and women) feared that choosing IT majors would lead to social ostracism. Very few students were concerned that IT college majors would not prepare them to do socially useful work. And very few of the women in this survey ruled out IT careers because they felt it would be difficult to combine these careers with raising a family.