Hey i’m 18 years old. I just graduated from Whittier Tech in Haverhill MA. I graduated a Fully certified Microsoft Office Specialist. I’m taking night classes for IT/Networking w/ Security and i’m the only girl in my class. I already know most of the information and so i don’t take notes.  I get just about all of the questions asked of me right and the guys look at me like i’m completely insane. I was beginning to think i was alone in this until i read about you in the msn article. Thank you.

Ive been working on an all electric car that never will need to be plugged into the wall. I have been working on my prototype for a few years now.

Hi ComputerChick! It’s great to hear that you are forging ahead in the still primarily male dominated field - particularly the network services area. I would highly recommend that you consider taking courses in Database/Server maintenance and also just maintaining, fail over plans, and other Server related topics. I have found this is an area that very very few individuals, male or female, have mastered. As the world becomes more integrated with database driven systems, being able to protect and support the server(s) is important.

Keep it up!!

(And holler if you are looking for internships, I can see what I can dredge up!)

I’m doing lessons in Server 2003, Linux and XP i’ve also had experience with Vista and the newest microsoft for skills USA where i took bronze in the district competition. And Angelena what your doing is a big help to everyone.

As a college professor, I would like to give you all a little insight into what I see in the classroom.  These are generalities and are not always true, but it is common enough that I see these as trends.

When young men come into my classroom they are all about telling how much they know, how they have been doing computers since they were 10, and how they don’t think they will learn much from my class but it is required.  The young women who come into my class often begin by apologizing for not knowing very much and (for the freshman women especially) look like they are going to run for the door. 

But here is the reality.  The guys do not know half as much as they claim to know and often struggle because they won’t ask for help.  The women know way more than they give themselves credit for, often ask for help ( a very good thing when you are struggling with new concepts) and often are the top students in the class.

So here is the take away.  Do not let the guys and all their bragging intimidate you.

KnockitOff thank you for that advice because thats one of my biggest problems. I’m 5’3” and therefor smaller than everyone in my class and i do get intimidated easily because i feel so small and am the only girl in the class. I want to do computer science and electrical engineering but i’m also afraid to because i’m a girl. As for the guys saying they know everything i can relate easily because my boyfriend does that to me. He talks like hes the all powerful computer guru and i know nothing.I really do appreciate the advice

Reminds me of a guy I dated once. He took it upon himself to “fix” his own computer and others. Really what he was doing was adding additional ram and different video and sound cards. All of a sudden, his computer was pretty much a silent box that did nothing. After six weeks of saying “I could look at that for you...” I finally took the initiative and fixed it while he was at work one day. It was all an issue of drivers and hardware. (He had digital speakers and only an analogue audio card because his cousin who had “taken a look” decided to take his digital card.)

I then decided to edit his screen saver to be a picture of me with the words “Lexi is the Comp Goddess!”

When his friends asked him how he fixed his computer, he said, “My girlfriend.”

Their response, “No. Really, how did you get it fixed.”

I don’t think they really believed that a girl could fix the computer after three or four guys failed.

On the other hand, I have rarely announced to the social world that I am such a big nerd. In fact, most people have no clue what I do for a living. And in general, people think I am a nice but “vacuous” person.

That does lead to the question: How important is it for us to be nerd girls in public? Is it worth the confusion of other people and sometimes the ostracising due to their own feelings of inadequacy??

I have been very fortunate with volunteering information about what I do for a living. I came from a home with two parents who both had Masters in Mechanical Engineering. My mother is a senior quality engineer for an aerospace company and my father takes supervisor positions in between bouts of unemployment and running his own businesses. I was very fortunate to be surrounded by strong technical influences growing up. When people get the “wow” look I take it as a compliment because I have always been “different”. (I didn’t stand a chance of being cool in highschool.)

When it came time for college, there were 60 guys in my java class, half of whom Chinese or Russian was their primary language, and little deer-in-headlights me.

All of this has made me who I am. I am a tough-skinned independent thinker. And if someone tries to ostracize me for it, “I don’t care and you don’t matter”.--Just like my attitude when I was in highschool. The people who ostracized me growing up have little to show today for their existence on earth besides illegitimate kids.

When it came to dating, I found I did much better with non-competitive men. I had an ex-fiance who was always trying to compete with me and the break-up was a bloody mess because of it. My husband now has complementary traits to me and has never tried to one-up me. He is instead proud of me for who I am. We each have skills to offer and before we got married we made the decision that he would do the stay at home Dad thing while I continued to work. He is 35 and I am 27. I am only 5 years out of college and make twice as much as he does. He also has a college degree, but not in a science based field.

Gender roles are changing and I am excited to be a part of it.

thats truly amazing. I’m wondering what is going to happen to me when i start making more than my boyfriend. I was the furthest thing from popular in highschool. I actually just graduated in may. But everyone called me a geek because i was smart and i was always reading. But now that i know that i’m not alone i’m proud of it.

Check out the dating advice thread in the Popular Culture folder. :) Maybe you will get some hints and such for what to look for!

Knockitoff, I have seen the same thing with my students.  I’m a prof. in Electrical Engr.  (oops did I give away my identity - there are so few of us!) Anyway, the women students typically lack confidence - most of the men are not that confident but project the image that they are.  If a woman does badly on an exam, she is in my office blaming herself for not studying hard enough.  If a man does badly, the responses could be similar, but typically I am blamed for writing confusing problems, or other test flaws. 

If I have only learned one thing in all my years of teaching, it is that attitude trumps ability.  If you have confidence, and a positive attitude, you can have a career trajectory that is amazing.  If you lack confidence, and you have a defeatist attitude, your IQ can be 185, and success can be elusive.  Learn to accept your weaknesses (my first step in building my self esteem), be proud of your strengths, aim high, and never never give up.

Computer_Chick89 - 18 July 2008 01:31 PM

I get just about all of the questions asked of me right and the guys look at me like i’m completely insane.

I call this the “boobs are talking!” stare.  happens to all of us.

KnockItOff - 19 July 2008 09:49 AM

When young men come into my classroom they are all about telling how much they know, how they have been doing computers since they were 10, and how they don’t think they will learn much from my class but it is required.  The young women who come into my class often begin by apologizing for not knowing very much and (for the freshman women especially) look like they are going to run for the door.

thank you for saying this, it’s exactly what I was going to say!  It took me a good solid year in engineering to learn that the guys didn’t actually know more than me, they were just confident and better at faking it.  i think it’s a major difference between men and women, when we’re first starting out.

In my very first computer science class I was half terrified. My teacher was referring to “for-loops” and “if-statements.” Several of the male students took it upon themselves to start up arguments and questions with the professor - to which I couldn’t even understand the question let alone the answer. I’d dabbled in web programming in my parent’s basement, but I’d never studied computer _theory_.

All I could do was sit tight, take vigorous notes, and ask lots of questions later. That was a lot of my freshman year - gathering the information first and making sense of it later. I eventually managed to pass my freshman year courses, everything “clicked” in the first few weeks of my sophomore year, and I’d mastered the material by the end of my degree.

Among my years of association with freshman girls entering engineering (through school activities and as a teacher’s assistant) I’ve found that the secret is to stiffen your resolve and be yourself. Shamelessly ask questions when you need the help. Confidentially wear whatever makes you feel beautiful, pretty, and feminine (though don’t flaunt the fact). Take courage that anyone can learn to do anything taught in an academic discipline if its what she really wants to do.

My problem is that i don’t usually dress girly. I’m a tomboy i’d rather work on a car than go to a nail salon. Most of my clothes are band t’s. I don’t flaunt that i’m a girl, and i have the worst confidence issues. I’m what you would call a mouse. How do i overcome my problems so i’m successful? Any advice?

Computer_Chick89 - 21 July 2008 11:40 AM

How do i overcome my problems so i’m successful? Any advice?

You need to become the center of attention for something to crawl out from under that rock! Here’s some ideas from things that helped me:
-Organize a large event (company picnic, hobby club meet, over-night LAN party, etc)
-Dress sexy with a tight white shirt and go to a dance club where almost everyone is between 18 and 21. The blacklights will make you glow. Get on that dance floor and shake it! Boys will literally line up around you.
-(Not for the faint of heart) Before I met my husband and I felt the need for a pick-me-up I did an amateur night at a local strip club. Nothing like 100 random men who you will never see again clapping and cheering for you. :)
-Musically inclined? Join a band and actually do live stage performances.

The common theme here is tempt fate by putting yourself out there to be exposed to positive criticism.

HerAlterEgo thank you for the advice but even when i do put myself there i get criticisim. How do i overcome with that.