What I've found is many of the best programmers are simply good problem or puzzle solvers. May I suggest having some kind of placement tests when people come to check out the team. This doesn't have to be an exam in the traditional sense, but just try to identify a certain skill sets. I think many people don't become programmers simply because they are #1 intimidated by it and #2 don't find code immediately interesting. One simple way to do this is everyone who joins is given a mindstorms kit and told to program something simple. I think what you'll find will surprise both you and the student. Many students have just never tried coding. Its an incredibly rewarding experience for problem and puzzle solvers to get a robot running by itself. Its all in how you sell it, you sell it as programming and people may be immediately deterred, maybe rephrasing it as automation would be more attractive
