Improving the Representation of Undergraduate Women in Cybersecurity: A Literature Review

Despite cybersecurity's projected rapid growth in jobs (32%+ yearly), women remain underrepresented, occupying only 25% of roles globally. While there have been numerous recent efforts aimed at addressing the underrepresentation of women in cybersecurity, particularly through undergraduate education interventions, this gap persists. To better understand why this may be occurring, we embarked upon a literature review to document what kinds of interventions have been applied to improve the representation of undergraduate women in cybersecurity. Through this survey we found that most past interventions can be categorized as: recruitment efforts, the development of external support systems and out-of-classroom activities, or innovations in cybersecurity curricula pedagogy. Importantly, the literature contains very few quantitative evaluations of the impact of interventions on the representation of undergraduate women, particular with regard to curricular interventions and pedagogy. As such, we urge cybersecurity educators and practitioners to develop additional studies with quantifiable impact metrics and in particular, with a focus on course designs. By developing validated and documented interventions leveraging best practices in accessibility, inclusion, and belonging, with a focus on undergraduate women, we can take important steps towards improving the gender diversity of the field.