Girls Who Code

It's no secret that there's a lack of women in the tech industry. But the former deputy public advocate of New York City, Reshma Saujani, wants to do something about it, CNET reports.

Saujani launched a new initiative called Girls Who Code this month backed by tech heavyweights Twitter, eBay, Google and General Electric. The programme aims to encourage high school girls to study computer science and engineering.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Girls Who Code is starting an eight-week programme in July for 20 high-school-age girls, who will learn how to build Web sites and mobile apps and start their own companies. There will also be workshops on topics such a financial literacy, computer science and robotics.

Despite many programmes aimed at encouraging women in tech fields, fewer than 20% of undergraduate degrees in engineering or computing and information sciences were awarded to women in 2009, according to the National Center for Women & Information Technology. A fraction of start-ups are led by or founded by women.

Girls Who Code and other initiatives aimed at drawing more women to tech fields say the key is to get girls interested in science, engineering and computing when they are very young, and support them to pursue education in technology.

Girls Who Code's curriculum will weave sessions on robotics, mobile apps, Web design and engineering fundamentals with a prominent speakers series featuring Gilt Groupe founder Alexis Maybank and General Electric CMO Beth Comstock, The Daily Beast writes.

The girls, who are mostly first-generation Americans, and whose average age is 15, will also tour the New York offices of Twitter, Facebook, Google, Foursquare and other technology companies for a sense of their inner-workings and a peek at the ranks that they'll hope to one day infiltrate.