Let’s Talk: Vanessa and Nour

Vanessa: I want to do something software engineering related, like design meets computer science.

Nour: I’m going to do special education where I can teach differently-abled children how to code. So for me, I don’t have the issue of ending up in an office where you’re underrepresented, like in computer science.

Vanessa: I feel like in the work field there’s a lot of sexism.

Nour: And a lot of times…they consider that women get hired in computer science just because they need to fill a female quota and that we don’t actually get hired for being good at what we do. So even if you’re really good in your field, most of the time [the perception is] you’re just getting hired to fill a quota.

I think there’s this concept that you do stand out when you’re a female in the field. But it’s both negative and positive attention that you get.

Vanessa: And I feel that not caring—just doing your own thing regardless of what happens—is the way you can overcome it.

Nour: I was very concerned about them [perceptions of gender roles] in my first semester and it really does affect the way you work on things. You need to ignore them or else they pull you back.

— Vanessa Boghos and Nour Boumalham, Computer Science