You are totally using the candidate's past work and experience to judge them. I'm sure those that get in have outstanding AP tests in math and science, great te

You are totally using the candidate's past work and experience to judge them. I'm sure those that get in have outstanding AP tests in math and science, great test scores, etc. A hot-short programmer would have that experience counted as well. The point is that programming is not the only type of experience they looked at. That's the same as it is for most other technical degrees (like my ChE). And there isn't any preference based on gender, so this is nothing like affirmative action. It is just saying that bright technical people can learn programming, and don't need to come in as an expert. Also, computer science is no more about computers than astronomy is about telescopes [1]. [1] http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Computer_science http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Computer_science