Women in IT – what is the situation in the industry?

Women in IT: how does the adventure begin?

According to a survey conducted by No Fluff Jobs, both women who work in IT and those who are just starting out are highly educated. As many as 61% have completed a master’s degree and less than 30% have completed a bachelor’s or engineering degree.

The survey also showed that many of the women surveyed gained their technology knowledge on their own. As many as 34% of them learned their trade outside of IT studies (self-study at home and IT courses). Interestingly, a significant portion of the female respondents declaring a desire to work in the new technology industry were working in the following industries at the time of the survey:

• banking and finance
• sales
• marketing
• engineering and industry
• Journalism and education (the smallest group)

What specialization and programming language do women in IT choose? 

According to the survey, the most popular specialization among women working in IT is Testing (16%) as well as Frontend and Backend (12%). Further down the list were specializations such as: Fullstack, UX/UI, Project Management and Business Analysis. It turned out that by far the least popular are specializations related to IT Support: DevOps, IT Administration, Security and Embedded and Product Management.

When it comes to programming languages most often chosen by women, the top four include: Java, JavaScript, Python and SQL. In last place was the C++ language. Only 3% of the women surveyed declared knowledge of this programming language. 

Women in IT: salaries and work atmosphere – what is the situation for women?

It might seem that high salaries in the industry would be the biggest advantage for female respondents. It turned out, however, that this is not the case. Women put a good atmosphere at work above the financial benefits. They equally value the possibility of personal development, remote work and participation in many interesting projects.

In 2020, the reason for changing a job among many women was the need for new challenges, as well as unsatisfactory atmosphere in the company. Earnings not in line with expectations were only in third place. Among the respondents there was also a large group of women who decided to change their jobs due to a lack of security and stability. 12% of respondents changed the industry as a result of job loss.

Desire for new challenges and passion for work

The outbreak of a pandemic in 2020 has shaken the entire world, and that includes the job market. Many companies developed new business models, while others were shut down. The pandemic has changed the outlook on remote working or hiring juniors.

Although the road to change the industry is not easy and certainly raises many question marks, recently we can observe an increase in the importance of soft skills in our society, which to some extent can compensate for the lack of technical knowledge. 

Myths in IT – we dispel the superstitions

There are a lot of myths surrounding working in IT, a significant part of them are related to gender issues. As you can guess, these are generalities that have little to do with reality. However, this does not prevent them from being regularly repeated by people who have nothing to do with the IT industry. The most common of the myths include:

• men are more competent in the field of new technologies
• working in IT is not compatible with family life
• women are not interested in technology

It is not lack of competence that is the problem, but lack of confidence

Although our society is changing, there are still times when young women are steered towards “female” professions. Sometimes young girls who are interested in the sciences feel a little strange when juxtaposed with the many ideas about what women “should” do and what men “should” do. This causes a drop in self-confidence and a feeling of some alienation if there is no support and understanding from family or environment.

It is not true that men are more competent in new technologies than women. This is shown by the existence of organizations such as Women in Technology, Geek Girls Carrots, Girls who Code, PyLadies or #MomWorkInIT. This shows that women are hungry for knowledge, disciplined and determined to enter the IT world and take on new challenges. In the world of women, there is no lack of competence or openness to interest in new technologies and the IT sector.

Woman in IT: family life vs. work

The balance between family and work life depends on both the employer and the employee. A woman in IT can reconcile family life with work, provided she can set and maintain boundaries. It is worth noting that companies operating in the technology industry are most inclined to a flexible approach to work. Remote work, in this case, can have a significant impact on reconciling work and family life.

Although the IT industry brings many challenges, in a friendly work environment it is easy to take care of the balance between family life and professional life. Currently, the IT market is considered the most secure, due to the progressive digitization and the constant demand for specialized staff.

Women in IT: can the IT industry be interesting for women?

The stereotype that women don’t want to work in IT is dispelled by the existence and growth of the aforementioned organizations: Women in Technology, Geek Girl Carrots, Girl who Code, PyLadies and #MomWorkInIT. Women are hungry for knowledge and determined to take on new challenges in the IT world. There is a reason why meetings organized for women who want to develop in this industry are very popular.

It is high time to say goodbye to stereotypes and to look around and see what the world around us looks like. At Da Vinci Studio we believe in the human potential and have an open attitude towards everyone interested in the IT industry. Contact us and check it out!