"Eyes Were Watching Me": Undergraduate Women's Experiences in Computing Internships Across Modalities

Abstract: Internships are common undergraduate experiences, although the rise of virtual and hybrid modalities invoke new questions about how students experience changing work environments. Virtual and hybrid work formats are especially common in computing, a field dominated by men. This study uses Acker's theory of gendered organizations and intersectionality to explore how undergraduate women experienced in-person, hybrid, and virtual computing internships. Findings illustrate the complex nature and results of modality, with virtual internships promoting access and bodily agency, but rendering women invisible. In-person settings amplified hypervisibility, isolation, and vulnerability, but also provided more opportunity for connection and solidarity.