The Roanoker - March/April 2018 - 33

ASHIMA
ATHRI
SOFTWARE ENGINEER

Being raised in a different culture gives
Ashima Athri a different perspective on
gender roles.

Ashima Athri, software developer at Rackspace, was educated in
Information Technology in India. In America, IT is a traditionally maledominated industry. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, women
represent roughly 20 percent of all software developers.
Ashima Athri, software
developer at Rackspace, was
educated in Information
Technology in India. In America,
IT is a traditionally male-dominated
industry. According to the U.S.
Department of Labor, women
represent roughly 20 percent of all
software developers.
However, "In India, women
actually do gravitate to computer
science and electronics fields. We see
it as less physical, more mental work.
It's very commonplace for women,"
says Athri. And it's reflected in the
makeup of their educational system.
"A lot of effort is given to
teaching math and science, not
much of a focus on arts and
literature, which is why women
there don't even flinch at the idea
of going into technical fields.
TheRoanoker.com

It's considered a way to advance
and achieve a measure of financial
security," says Athri.
After completing her
undergraduate studies, she worked
at an IT company in India. There
she found a supportive environment.
"I had a few senior colleagues who
really took me under their wing and
gave me the practical knowledge
that I needed," she says.
Athri went on to earn her
Master's in Computer Science at
Virginia Tech. While there, she
took an internship with Rackspace,
where she still works as a software
developer building applications
and APIs over the Google
Cloud Platform (GCP).
Despite the perception of
women struggling in the tech
industry, Athri says, "I don't think

that I'm perceived differently, but I
perceive myself differently. It's that
uncertainty that I think anyone in
technical or creative fields feel-am
I smart enough; can I solve this. It
pushes me to learn more instead of
getting comfortable."
She enjoys the creative problemsolving aspect of her work. "It's not
like 'do this.' It's more like facing an
open question that you can solve in
any way that you want to with the
tools and experience that you bring
to the table." But she adds, "You have
to have a tolerance for failure. The
job moves so fast, you have to learn
fast and not fear failure. It's how you
learn in this profession."
When asked why more women
aren't in the field, Athri responds,
"Right now, it's the place to be and
has the most jobs. More women
should be here."
MARCH/APRIL 2018

33



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The Roanoker - March/April 2018

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Roanoker - March/April 2018

The Roanoker - March/April 2018 - Intro
The Roanoker - March/April 2018 - Cover1
The Roanoker - March/April 2018 - Cover2
The Roanoker - March/April 2018 - 3
The Roanoker - March/April 2018 - 4
The Roanoker - March/April 2018 - 5
The Roanoker - March/April 2018 - 6
The Roanoker - March/April 2018 - 7
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