5 reasons women make great coders

GitHub is a famous open-source software platform where over 73 million developers shape the future of software together. Although men famously make up 91% of the software development industry, researchers in a gender-blind study discovered that code written by women was approved at a higher rate (78.6%) than software code written by men (74.6%). So, women not only make great coders, but women in coding outperform their male colleagues due to their levels of attention to detail. 

If you are searching for motivation to start a career in IT or inspiration to take the leap into the tech industry, here are five reasons why women coders are well suited to the industry 

 

1. Women Were the First Coders

If we trace the origins of computer programming, 75% of codebreakers at Bletchley Park were women and engineering at NASA was predominantly performed by women. In fact, Ada Lovelace, an English mathematician, is widely known as the world's first computer programmer.  

Female coders have a long history of changing the world. Fast forward to the present day, programming is considered a male-dominated industry, but thankfully, the gender gap in the coding industry can change. 

It would be inaccurate to suggest that there is greater interest in technology from women, but there certainly is a stronger demand for women coders. Globally, technology firms are experiencing a shortage of skilled workers, making it a prime opportunity to bridge the gender gap. Also, we should never forget that gender balance in computer programming was much more even 50 years ago compared to today.  

 

2. Communication

Successful people in programming will heavily rely on their collaboration and communication skills over their technical knowledge,  as this is something that can be acquired by completing a range of coding courses.

In the workplace, how you communicate and share technical ideas and data to a non-technical audience and other tech colleagues is very important. The ability to seamlessly communicate with different audiences and naturally adjust their tone and language is just one of many characteristics attributed to women that make them perfect for a career in coding. 

Coding is also essentially a conversation between a computer operating system and the developer. Women have a reputation for communicating more eloquently than men, partly due to their ability to pay attention to detail, which is a critical skill in coding. This increases their approval rate when writing code and allows a female coder to naturally work with the right people to unlock a solution or keep a project on track.   

 

3. Thinking Outside the Box

Reese Witherspoon famously shared her frustrations with Hollywood scripts where a helpless girl turns to the guy when facing a problem and says, ‘What do we do now?'” It’s a scene that we have all observed in countless movies and TV shows, but, in reality,  women are natural problem solvers and great at thinking outside of the box. This is an important observation because women in coding tend to be persistent and will take a creative approach to resolve this themselves, thanks to their natural problem-solving skills.  

We are just beginning to appreciate that diversity of thought combined with differences in opinions or perspectives play a crucial role in finding solutions to complex problems, and the best female coders are comfortable finding different resources and coming up with innovative solutions. Sure, men and women often see things differently, but this should be celebrated for that very reason. But, with women in coding,, you won’t find anyone saying the words; what do we do now? 

 

4. Naturally Able to Multi-Task and Adapt

Durable skills such as adaptability are often in short supply within an organisation. In an ever-changing digital world, employees are challenged to continuously adapt to new or unusual situations as technology continues to evolve. These skills come naturally to women but are sadly lacking in many IT teams due to the lack of female coders. 

Women in coding or other tech roles thrive when working independently or in a dynamic group and team setting. The art of seamlessly adapting to their surroundings without being phased when faced with the breakneck speed of cultural or technological change makes women invaluable in the programming world. As Tech projects can often be quite stressful, a tenacious attitude and an equal measure of patience is required when adapting to real-time changes.. 

In the workplace, women coders instinctively switch into adaptability mode. Their resilience helps them and their colleagues triumph over adversity in even the most stressful or high-pressure situations which is why women make great coders. 

 

5. Highly Creative Coding

In software development, women have a reputation for using their coding skills in a wide range of creative and inspirational ways. That can not be replaced by AI, automation, and robots. 

Most people may not think of software development as a creative career choice. However, women coders are often attracted by learning and discovering new ways to use code to solve problems that require a high level of technical creativity. Although early in a software development career, the big focus will be ensuring that your code works and, as they advance, women in coding naturally get creative in learning how to make their code run faster while also making it easier for other developers in the team to understand and maintain. 

We should never forget that every future of innovation will be generated by code written in software. If you choose a career as a woman in coding, you will be at the heart of solving critical business problems by leveraging your natural skills such as problem solving, communicating, and analytical thinking in a creative way.  

But what do you need to learn to begin an exciting career in software development?  

As a woman learning to code, you are transforming your career. Initially, you might find yourself attracted by lucrative salaries and opportunities to future-proof your IT career, but you are playing a pivotal role in changing the world with a combination of your ideas and knowledge. Most importantly, you will be arming yourself with the tech skills needed to fill the growing IT skills gap of female coders.  

So, what are good coding languages to learn, and does it matter if you have little to no experience in IT? When searching for good coding languages to learn, you will probably have read about HTML/CSS, JavaScript, and Python. Essentials around all these languages and more are covered extensively in Code+ which is a novice to professional coding course. This course has been created and validated by tech industry experts, built around preparing you for your career in coding.

For those that want to specialise in a coding language such as Python, but have minimal web development experience, the simplicity of its coding language makes it a perfect entry point for beginners.  

The best certifications needed to secure a career as a coder do not have any prerequisites, and better still, you could quickly find yourself on an average annual salary of $120,000 a year. 

 

How Difficult is Coding to Learn?

The difficulty of learning to code depends on the students' dedication, persistence, and willingness to learn. Learning to code involves learning new languages and syntax that might be difficult to grasp at first, but we have many online courses that will help you get started. Although the prospect of learning something new might feel daunting, our courses will help you build the pathway to your dream career as a woman in tech.  

 

Online Programming Courses for Women in Coding

Python 

Regardless of your experience, the Python course has no prerequisite and will help you reach the level of Pythonista. Upon completion, you will have learned web programming and front-end projects, automated testing strategies, and binary trees.

Agile for Software Development

Contrary to popular opinion, software development is not all about technical knowledge. What makes IT teams excel together is the methodology and adaptability that ensures everyone is working the same way and talking the same language, which is why women make great coders. The Agile for software development course will ensure you gain the critical skills and knowledge needed to embrace an Agile mindset in the workplace.

By exploring Agile fundamentals and Scrum Methodology, you will quickly learn more about software requirements, software design, and estimation methods of Agile software projects. It will also prepare you to work in a tech team where agile methodologies, extreme programming, and project management are used seamlessly across an organisation.

If you are interested in pursuing a career in IT management or leadership, this could be the perfect course to kickstart your career in tech. 

Projects Management in Software Development

Not only do women work well in coding roles, but women are also thriving in leadership roles in tech and software development. Before deciding if you want to take the technical or managerial route, you might find yourself asking the question, what is a software development manager? Or what does a software development manager do?

Whether you are a coding enthusiast wanting to thrive in software development, or a tech leader that wants to make well-informed data-driven business decisions, our team of expert career consultants will accelerate you towards a successful career in software development.   

Contact our team about your career needs and discover all aspects of software development with our in-depth online training courses today.