When you hear the term ‘coder’ or ‘data scientist’ – what do you picture?
I think many of us would have to admit that the first image that comes to mind is a nerdy kid (let’s be real, most likely male) who wears glasses and messes around with computers and calculators all day.
But this idea, just like the others that we’re presenting this month, is a myth that holds women back from seeing a career in one of these fields as a truly viable option.
This is what we want to prove through this campaign: that these are really great job options for women, and they are attainable despite these narratives telling us otherwise.
And what does being a nerd really mean anyways?
Luckily, we have strong voices, like that of Mariana Tobis, Business Analyst at SCRM and allWomen alumna, to show us exactly how to ignore these toxic thought patterns and get the tech careers that we deserve.
“For a long time, I had a lot of my own prejudices against being a ‘tech nerd.’ And actually, while I was studying industrial engineering, I pictured myself working in a factory with big machines, making goods that I’d probably never be interested in. At that point, working in a digital company, as a ‘tech nerd’ was not even a remote idea in my mind. I figured it was just for pure tech profiles, which wasn’t my situation.
Then, without planning it, I joined my first digital company, and I realized how exciting it was to be there. In the end, since it was a new field for everyone, we were all learning by doing. In fact, it wasn’t necessary at all to have a tech background to succeed and enjoy the journey.
Today, I believe that if being a nerd means being interested in technology, participating in developing digital products that make people’s lives easier, working on multidisciplinary teams, and – above all – having fun, then I am proud to be a nerd.”Mariana Tobis, Business Analyst at SCRM
Yes girl!
If our alumna are nerds, then we may need to change the definition. Because all we see are badass ladies who are changing the future of technology.
Come and join them by studying a tech discipline with us! We’re nerds and proud of it.