Girls Who Code Reflect on Their Summer at Cadence!

This summer, 21 tenth- and eleventh-grade girls came to Cadence’s San Jose campus as part of our partnership with Girls Who Code. The Summer Immersion Program lasted seven weeks and provided the girls with a no-cost curriculum introducing them to ​computer​ ​science​ principles ​through​ ​real-world​ ​projects in​ ​art​ ​and​ ​storytelling,​ ​robotics,​ ​game​ ​development,​ ​web​ ​development,​ ​and more. Languages​ ​used​ ​included​ ​Scratch,​ ​Python,​ ​Arduino​ ​C,​ ​HTML,​ ​CSS,​ ​and JavaScript.​

As the program coordinator for Cadence, I witnessed the girls become more confident each week as they learned new concepts and engaged in educational (and fun!) opportunities. The program culminated with a graduation earlier this month, which showcased the girls’ projects and talent. I personally cannot wait to see the impact these young women will have on the future of technology!

Although the Summer Immersion Program came to an end, the girls left with special memories, bright ideas, and lasting friendships. Four of the girls took a moment to look back on their journey and share firsthand their experiences here at Cadence.

Summer at Cadence by Tran, Mansi, Sanjana, and Rishika

Tran: Growing up, my summers were filled with repetitive forms of self-entertainment as my parents worked all day long. While my friends were away on vacation or participating in engineering enrichment camps that cost hundreds of dollars, I was at home reading and watching TV, as I knew that the programs my friends attended were luxuries my parents could not afford. As a first-generation, college-bound student who grew up with no exposures to engineering, I was oblivious to the possibilities of becoming a woman in technology and the immense impact I could make. The summer of 2019 changed my life. Selected as a participant of the Girls Who Code Summer Immersion Program hosted by Cadence, I received a free educational opportunity where I dedicated more than 250 hours learning to code numerous languages, from Python to Javascript to HTML. The immense amount of knowledge I grasped about programming, website development, data analysis, chip design, and robotics—combined with job shadowing and networking opportunities with various amazing woman engineers—are the catalysts for my growing interest in computer science and engineering.

Mansi: When I got my acceptance email from Girls Who Code, I was excited about learning new things and meeting new people, but I was also nervous about the work atmosphere I would be facing every day. Would the employees be friendly? Would the lessons be difficult? Will I enjoy this program? On the first day of the program, all my worries and anxiety had dissipated as I was exposed to the genuine and benevolent community both Cadence and Girls Who Code offered to us. We were all encouraged to ask questions, interact with the employees, learn as much as we could, and to enjoy our time here. Cadence offered us opportunities that educated us to the tech industry, like the town hall with the CEO, the internship fair, guest speakers, mentorship with employees, and many more. The employees were also very helpful and always ready to teach us about their role in their company and possible ventures for us.

Sanjana: Girls Who Code taught me so much more than just coding. Everyone at the program was equally as eager and excited as me to learn how to program with popular languages. It allowed us to push and challenge each other’s ability. Python was a good language to start with it as I was able to connect the problem statement and the intended solution giving me the results I needed. Markup languages allowed me to showcase my creative and artistic side by providing a platform to design a website for either recreational or professional purposes. Each day, I thoroughly enjoyed the challenge to write code to solve problems efficiently and expand my knowledge. The program’s curriculum allowed me to delve into various aspects within computer science, such as programming, coding, and hardware.

Rishika: One thing that I did not expect in my time at Cadence was to be exposed to so many different work professionals who were happy to talk about their journey in the workforce, and how they struggled along the way. Every speaker we had did everything they could to tell us that there are multiple ways to success, and one roadblock in our way wasn’t the end of everything. They told us about what they’d learned in the multiple years they’d been in the workplace, and gave us tips and insight on what we could do to succeed in the future.

Cadence itself seemed to recognize the importance of “work hard, play hard,” and made sure that we had experiences that were not just educational, but enjoyable as well. They made us feel included in company events, and organized events that allowed us to bond with each other and take our minds off the curriculum.

I will always be grateful for my time at Cadence, and the opportunities and knowledge it has provided for me for the future; thank you to everyone at Cadence, it was a pleasure to be here!