It's interesting to compare to the proportion of women in or entering other "traditionally male" fields that are often seen as having a "boys club" atmosphere:

It's interesting to compare to the proportion of women in or entering other "traditionally male" fields that are often seen as having a "boys club" atmosphere: - ~21% of practicing software engineers and ~21% of CS degree recipients are women. http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/print/298007/Making_IT_Work http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/print/298007/Making_I... - ~25% of practicing lawyers and 44% of law students are women. http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1P2-4197736.html http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1P2-4197736.html - 30% of doctors and 42% of med students are women. http://www.uslaw.com/library/article/ABAWomenJustice.html http://www.uslaw.com/library/article/ABAWomenJustice.html It seems that medicine and law are significantly more effective at recruiting female students, and somewhat less so but still significantly more effective at attracting women to the workforce. Is there anything CS has to learn from these professions that are often seen as "macho", individualistic, and prone to long work hours?