As technology increasingly becomes a vital part of our lives, diversity in tech will continue be a major issue.
According to a study by New York startup Course Report, coding boot camps like Black Girls Code and Code for Progress are filling the diversity gap at a quicker rate than the diversity initiatives of tech giants.
The report revealed that 36 percent of the attendees at coding camps are women. Course Report co-founder, Liz Eggleston, said that may be a result of the tech industry’s on-going diversity movement.
“The market demand is there,” Eggleston said. “Tech companies want to get closer to a 50-50 split, so they’re demanding more female applicants.”
The report findings suggests that companies like Twitter,who announced months prior that they intended to add more women to their work force, should consider attending the coding camps to begin their recruitment process.
The report shows that 5 percent of African-Americans are involved in coding camps compared to 63 percent of whites, 20 percent of Hispanics and 14 percent Asian Americans. That may not seem like a significant number of Black people. However, compared to the 5 percent of Black workers in all major tech companies combined, that number is an improvement.
According the International Business Times, the number of Black students earning bachelor’s degrees in computer science is 3.2 percent and 6.8 percent for Hispanics. This increased interest shows that there is a desire to learn coding outside of the college setting but other factors like the lack of exposure to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) careers, economics, and social status may stint growth.
One the most fascinating numbers the report reveals is that coding school graduates find tech jobs within four months of completing school. In fact, 38 percent saw their salaries increased and 89 percent of the students found a job.
