I’ve recently caught myself admitting the fact that I’d rather consult a male tech supporter in connection to the computer sphere. Besides, I always feel disappointed when on the other end of the line a young girl answers my call, and even more guilty asking her to get me through to a male counterpart. Why do I discriminate against my ‘gender sisters’? It is so embarrassing that I can not find any excuses for my being so unfair.
The other day I read an article on this issue which prefaces its reasoning by stating that the most common conclusion about why young women are rare encounters in this occupation is that allegedly, they go in for this profession only because of the possibility of getting acquainted with potential boyfriends. It seems to have a ring of truth, in a way. But if you think about it, it must sound reasonable for young women only, who want to establish relationships, assuming that the field of information technology is traditionally occupied by smart men in their prime. Am I not right?
However, it is impossible to deny the fact that today not only singular female postgraduates but also married women in their 30s and 40s have already been working in such IT companies for years. And the number of those who are making waves in software development, even if not very fast, is steadily growing today all over the world, including Russia.
Let me approach this from my point of view. I often visit an outpatient clinic. What I’ve noticed for the past two years since the first outbreak of the covid infection is that female doctors have become, as never before, familiarised with computers. Well that is not a particular or proper possession of IT knacks, but anyway it speaks volumes about women advancing in this sphere. For instance, mostly women work in government internet services like the State Office “My Documents” where residents can receive all sorts of services, leave notes to government organisations, fill in forms for many purposes including financial social subsidies etc. Well-rounded in information technologies women-operators are of help at any time.
After all, isn't the female surgeon at the Botkin Hospital in Moscow qualified in the field of information technology. I think she is. Not only did she operate on my leg two weeks ago, she also uploaded a video recording of the surgery process and X-rays of my foot into the medical computer system so the orthopedist in my outpatient clinic could see spokes in my toes and other metal fixing structures.