As more colleges started offering computer science degrees, in the 1960s, women flocked to the programs: 11 percent of computer science majors in 1967 were women. By 1984, that number had grown to 37 percent. Starting in 1985, that percentage fell every single year—until, in 2007, it leveled out at the 18 percent figure we saw through 2014. That shift coincides perfectly with the rise of the personal computer—which was marketed almost exclusively to men and boys.
I’ve heard the PC marketing narrative. Is this really all it took to steer generations of women away from technology? It’s frightening how powerful marketing can be.
