Implications of Gender Consciousness for Students in IT Programs

Previous studies claim that heightened gender consciousness helps promote women's careers. One professional arena in which women are seriously underrepresented is information technology (IT). This proposal investigates the effects of gender consciousness among students preparing for careers in information technology. The questions that guide the study are: What is the overall level of gender consciousness among IT students? What are the characteristics of IT students with high and low gender consciousness? Are different levels of gender consciousness associated with differing amounts of self-confidence and ambition as regards students' education and future IT careers? Our findings suggest that gender consciousness is related to students' experience, and has both positive and negative implications for women's educational and professional success.