It’s a not-so-well-kept secret that women are an underrepresented group in computer science. Sophie Rain, PhD student at TU Wien Informatics, wants to change that by offering free, hands-on computer science workshops for primary school children ages 7 and up. But here’s the twist: all workshops are “unplugged” (i.e., without the use of computers).

As a woman in computer science, Sophie knows that she’s a minority – a fact that she’d like to change as soon as possible. She also thinks that computer science is a creative, exciting, and well-paid field, and she certainly doesn’t want girls and other underrepresented groups to miss out on it. What motivates her? Seeing kids, and especially girls, super hyped and excited after the workshops. Even more impressive: some of the kids tell her that they want to study computer science at TU Wien Informatics when they’re older.

And although not every child will become a computer scientist, they should at least have the opportunity to get a feel for it. To ensure a diverse digital future, the initiative promotes computer science that reduces and prevents prejudice and stereotypes and inspires the next generation of experts early on. The workshops are supported with funding from Let’s empower Austria (LEA).

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