The number of women taking ICT courses has declined, a leading academic has warned after briefing a government advisory group examining female participation in the industry.

Liisa von Hellens, associate professor at Griffith University and Women in ICT Summit Advisory Group member, told ZDNet Australia that in her opinion, "and supported by research evidence from Australia and elsewhere -- the number of women in core IT programs has not improved, quite the opposite actually." Also in the nation's business schools, she said, "the numbers of females majoring in information systems (IS)/IT have gone down."

von Hellens said some tertiary institutions such as Griffith University had implemented programs such as special scholarships or mentoring programs to encourage female students to pursue IT-related degrees.

von Hellens' comments come as the advisory group kicks off preparations for a national summit to address barriers that may be keeping women out of the ICT sector.

Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts Helen Coonan, chaired the first meeting of the group in Sydney last week.

"While the role of the sector clearly plays a vital role in the Australian economy, research by the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that women comprise only about one-fifth of the ICT workforce," Coonan said.

"The ICT industry needs to look at how it is perceived, not just by young women looking to pursue a career, but by their parents, teachers and their peer group."

von Hellens agreed, saying: "One of the challenges for solving this complex problem is to clarify the perception of an IT career to the wider audience, especially to young women, as research indicates that the diversity of IT occupations is not understood."

The advisory group, made up of prominent Australian women from the ICT and education sectors, discussed the key themes for the summit, its format and potential speakers.

The group also received briefings from Australian Computer Society national president, Edward Mandla and Michel Hedley, National ICT Workforce policy manager for the Australian Information Industry Association (AIIA).

Coonan said planning was on track for the summit to be held in late August or early September this year.

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