Diversity among computer scientists and technologists is necessary for the sustainable development of society through technological innovation. At UiT The Arctic University of Norway, only 13% of computer science students are women. Many find the learning curve in introductory computer science courses to be very steep, and thus, they drop out. Female students tend to be overrepresented in this group. The goal of this project was to improve the gender balance among computer science students at UiT by focusing on female first-year students and ensuring that they do not drop out of the study programs in the first year of study. The project established a seminar series for strengthening the basic programming-technical skills that many first-year students lack, and exposing them to different aspects and career paths within the computer science subject beyond the focus area of the study program. Results show positive developments, particularly related to the students' perceived introduction to basic technical topics. A comparison between 2024 and 2025 shows improvements in several of the areas addressed in the technical workshops, including use of file systems, terminals, debugging and the code development process. However, effects on dropout and study experience require more long-term measures.

翻译：计算机科学家和技术人员的多样性对于通过技术创新实现社会的可持续发展至关重要。在挪威北极大学（UiT），计算机科学专业学生中女性仅占13%。许多学生发现计算机科学入门课程的学习曲线非常陡峭，因此选择退学，而女性学生在这一群体中比例往往偏高。本项目的目标是通过关注一年级女学生，确保她们不在第一学年退学，从而改善UiT计算机科学专业学生的性别平衡。项目建立了一系列研讨会，旨在强化许多一年级学生缺乏的基础编程技术技能，并让他们接触计算机科学领域中超出专业课程重点方向的不同方面和职业路径。结果显示出了积极进展，尤其是在学生对基础技术主题的认知方面。2024年与2025年的对比表明，技术研讨会涉及的多个领域均有改善，包括文件系统、终端、调试和代码开发流程的使用。然而，对退学率和学习体验的影响需要更长期的措施来评估。