This project is a preparation and networking project, supported by Nordplus Horisontal, project: NPHZ-2017/10199.
The goal is to initiate a larger network project to increase the proportion of female students in programming, game development and creative IT studies at University level. We find the current low proportion of female applicants to such studies, alarming. As women are currently a minority of the workforce in the programming and game design industry, this leads to the domination of male viewpoints and influence in the various technical and cultural products created by the industry.
We regard Universities as an important gateway to the industry. We thus intend to collaborate closely with secondary schools (focusing on the upper secondary level) as well as industry representatives. We will arrange workshops and thematic events in the upper secondary schools that aim to a) increase the
interest of young women in programming, game design and other creative IT-studies and b) to increase the self-efficacy of young women within these disciplines. By doing so we hope to also create awareness on the upper secondary school level, regarding the importance of young women’s influence - as well as the importance of equal gender representation - in these areas. We hope that this will inspire more young women to apply for university studies within these disciplines and in time we thus hope for more balanced gender proportions amongst university graduates. To accomplish these goals we will further seek advice and assistance from local centers and networks for coding and gender equality.