Diversity, equality and gender at ITU

Diversity at ITU

Digitalization and technology are changing all aspects of society. This is why the IT University of Copenhagen strive for increased diversity and equality in tech and IT.

Since 2015, the board and executive management at ITU have kept diversity a top priority. The result is a number of initiatives to attract female students and improve ITU’s outreach to women as well as other underrepresented groups.

Focused effort to increase gender diversity among employees

ITU is working systematically and strategically to promote gender diversity by ensuring equal opportunities for all employees.

Management has approved an action plan which among other things will ensure a good and inclusive work environment at ITU, and that recruitment processes are fair and avoid unconscious biases.

In addition, ITU’s management has committed itself to preparing a Gender Equality Plan, an internationally recognized systematic method of working with gender diversity and ensuring that initiatives are followed up on.

Working towards gender diversity at ITU

Since 2015, it has been a primary objective for ITU to attract female applicants to the following technical programs: The BSc’s in Software Development and Data Science as well as the MSc’s in Computer Science and Software Design.

Women have been underrepresented in IT disciplines for decades even though we live in a technologically advanced society where IT impacts the daily lives of us all. Accordingly, we believe at ITU that women must take active part in developing the technology of tomorrow.

Denmark has a highly gender-divided labor market and educational system. At the same time, the demand for IT specialists in Denmark as well as in the rest of the world is growing rapidly. In order to meet this demand, we have to expand the pool of expertise and fuel and spread the notion that the tech industry is just as accessible to women as it is to men.

Projects and collaborations

Stemningsbillede fra Coding Cafe

An important component of ITU’s diversity strategy is a specific outreach project conducted in collaboration with various funds and organizations. In order to increase the number of female applicants, ITU has applied for and received funds from Villum Foundation and Novo Nordisk Foundation.

The funds collected help finance different activities introducing young women to programming, IT and career options for IT graduates. These activities are facilitated by the Communications Department at ITU.

From Niche to Mainstream: In 2018 ITU received 2,8 million DKK from Villum Foundation for a 3-year project. The project introduces women of the age range 15-20 years to programming and IT. In the span of the project we also provide the attending women with an understanding of the many career opportunities an IT degree may offer.

The project consists of a number of connected initiatives. Worth highlighting is the IT Camps twice a year and Coding Cafés held frequently each semester where the participants are introduced to basic programming. The initiatives also include Tech Career Days during which young women are introduced to role models from various IT companies.

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FAQ on gender diversity and equality

Why do special initiatives for women matter?
More boys than girls are introduced to programming during their childhood and teenage years, and consequently many young men are familiar with IT when choosing a field of study. Research shows that it is more likely that young people choose an IT-related specialization if they have had some experience within the field prior to applying for an IT-related degree. This is why ITU has chosen to give young women the opportunity to have a go at programming before they choose a field of study.

Through our initiatives, young women are also introduced to female role models from across the IT sector. This is to disprove the prejudices about gender roles and limitations in IT and tech.

The admissions procedure at ITU does not, however, take gender into account in any capacity, and the procedure fully complies with the guidelines issued by the Ministry of Education and Research.

Does ITU have equivalent initiatives for men?
ITU offers a variety of activities to young people of both genders curious to learn more about our IT bachelor’s degrees and programs. As a visiting high school student, you can become “Student for a Day” and experience the study environment at ITU in person. You can visit the Open House event every year in February, and you can undertake a “studiepraktik” (a short-term internship). We also regularly invite entire high school classes to introductory programming classes and visits at ITU.

Are women by nature less interested in IT?
Factors such as culture and gender stereotypes affect young people’s choice of an educational path to a high degree. In Denmark, both the labor market and educational sector are relatively gender segregated. In an effort to overcome this occupational segregation, ITU seeks to make young women further aware of IT fields of study and the opportunities they bring about. Therefore, the overall purpose of ITU’s various initiatives is to awaken a curiosity among potentially interested young women and to show what IT is actually all about. We want women to make informed decisions regarding their education.

What results has ITU achieved?
We see a clear tendency whereby more and more women apply for our technical programs and get admitted as well. From 2016 to 2020 the share of women among newly admitted bachelor students rose from 25 percent to 34 percent. The share of women enrolled in the BSc program in Software Development rose from 12 to 27 percent.