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E-PrinceEvery person who has passed by the E-Quad has seen the large, twisted, steel sculpture standing erect in the air at the front of the front doors. Its presence relieves some of the plainness in the architecture of the E-Quad ...(back to the article)
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Ben, I generally like your columns but I don't think that you can assess the situation of "girls in engineering" simply by asking them. Does the fact that they "feel" discriminated against actually mean that they are discriminated against? In fact, groups like "The Society of Women Engineers" at Princeton perpetuate the idea that women are stereotyped in the sciences...it might be true, but it is not sufficient just to ask women whether they feel stereotyped. Moreover, is it fair to immediately dismiss the idea that women in the sciences don't benefit from affirmative action? Why did the number of girls in the science and engineering department jump from 37% to 46% in two years? Was this really the result of more recruitment, or a higher rate of admissions? What is the admissions rate for men and women in the engineering department?
Thank you for the article!
I think this article is completely unnecessary, and it didn't even include a single real anecdote from a Princeton student. Relating the mistreatment of Hilary Clinton to the Princeton Engineering department? Please. As a woman engineer, I felt that this article was not only completely useless, but simply perpetuates the idea that women in the maths and sciences will continue to be discriminated against at the college level. This may be true on other campuses, but it is certainly not the case at Princeton, where there is a plethora of resources for women engineers on campus, including the hiring of many women faculty.
"In fact, groups like "The Society of Women Engineers" at Princeton perpetuate the idea that women are stereotyped in the sciences" I'm not sure they're "perpetuating an idea" so much as just stating a truth that still applies (to varying degrees, of course) to most fields of science in the U.S. (although things have and are improving rapidly in this regard). With that said, as Engineer '09 pointed out, it's entirely possible that Princeton is an exception to this trend. I admit, I know very little about the treatment of women engineers here.
@hehe
What I never understood was how "time and money" became "time times money." Should it be time + money?
regarding the comment from "Engineer '09":
I don't know what basis you have for alleging that the anecdotes stated in the article were not real (eg. the professor's skepticism concerning a student's aptitude for graduate school) but that aside, I know students can attest to the fact that there is certainly still discrimination in the department. The fact that women still only make up 15.4% of the faculty should be proof enough that work needs to be done to make the environment more equal between the sexes. And, of course, that starts with recruiting (and retaining) more female students in the engineering department.
Kudos again to the author for realizing the problem and [hopefully] prompting action.
me neither actually. lol
If there were no discrimination in favor of blacks and hispanics in the Princeton undergraduate admissions process, close to 28% more asians would be admitted. Why is there no outcry over our own admissions process?
I don't believe I ever felt 'discriminated' or stereotyped any more than the guys were during my BSEE program. Most definitely was not discouraged. Heck the professors did nothing but encourage me to continue on and pursue a PhD. I was with a group of intelligent, good-looking guys who studied with me, played pool etc and the last 26 years in engineering has been great too. I think less girls go in to engineering for the same reason less girls are mechanics. Depends on what they were exposed to by their parents, peers and environment.