Nation, University confront low number of female engineers

James Sturm, interim dean of the University's School of Engineering and Applied Science, has a daughter in sixth grade who is interested in math and science. So are several of her female friends from school.

Based on his experience, though, Sturm thinks the girls might become interested in other fields as they get older.

"I have no idea why they might change [their minds] over the next five years," Sturm said.

From grade school to college, among females, this shift away from math and science ultimately leads to a large gender gap in college-level engineering programs.

According to Maria Klawe, who will take over as SEAS dean in January, women only account for 15 to 20 percent of students in engineering programs in the United States. Princeton is ahead in the effort to promote gender balance in engineering — females represent about one-third of undergraduate engineers.

"The University has been proactive in making this a welcome place [for females]," said Klawe.

President Tilghman, a scientist herself, further attributes the University's progress in balancing the male-to-female ratio to the interest of former SEAS dean James Wei "in encouraging woman engineers, in the math and science qualifications of our student body and in Princeton's broad conception of an engineering education that also includes courses in the humanities and social sciences."

Wei left his position as dean last year to return to full-time teaching and research.

Support nonprofit student journalism. Donate to the ‘Prince’. Donate now »

Although the male-to-female ratio of the University's undergraduate A.B. program is nearly one-to-one, a breakdown of majors also reveals gender imbalances in some majors, such as math and physics. The same barriers apply in these typically maledominated fields.

Despite the University's efforts to encourage female engineering students, Klawe acknowledged that the gender imbalance in science and engineering begins to form well before college.

"As early as grade four, they are less interested in studying science," she said.

When it comes to high school, Klawe said, females only make up 25 percent of students in physics courses. The result is that fewer females are prepared for or interested in applying to undergraduate engineering programs.

Get the best of the ‘Prince’ delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe now »

"[Females are] not even represented in the [applicant] pool," she said.

There are many explanations as to why females have failed to gain equal representation in engineering schools. Some point to instances of subtle or overt sexual harassment and gender discrimination. Others point to a shortage of female role models. Still others cite the greater fluency with which males generally approach computers and technology — key aspects of engineering. Most, however, agree that a combination of factors is responsible for discouraging women from pursuing engineering.

"Girls tend to not perceive engineering as a field they can work in and enjoy," said Klawe. "They have no idea about the range of things you can do as an engineer."

Girls who have female engineers in the family or have had teachers recommend engineering to them are at an advantage, Klawe said. Even in high school, however, most science teachers are male and many teachers unconsciously single out male students as ideal candidates for engineering.

The stereotype of an engineer Klawe identified — jokingly using Sturm as an example — is a "nerdy-looking guy with a pocket protector." This "boy wonder" icon perpetuates the association of men with technology and science.

The college environment is often responsible for continuing to turn females away from engineering, Klawe said.

Tilghman added that some females feel that their capabilities in engineering are not adequately acknowledged in the University or workforce setting.

"Probably the most common complaint of young women scientists is that they are not being taken seriously . . . their opinions are not heard. This is bound to affect one's confidence," Tilghman said.

Unintentionally hurtful comments made by male students and teachers might have irreparable consequences on the confidence and comfort of female engineering students, Klawe said.

"For example, a female graduate student expresses worry over exams. A male says, 'Oh, they like women, you'll pass for sure.' The woman hears, 'I'm only here because I'm a woman.' Most comments aren't meant to be patronizing . . . [but] it takes a tremendous amount to overcome the feeling that you don't belong," she said.

Furthermore, Klawe said, "girls tend to be interested in ways to benefit society, and first year programs don't give them a chance to see that [aspect of engineering]."

Tilghman emphasized the need for females to press on despite these obstacles.

"I think the women who persevere in science and succeed tend to ignore the obvious fact that they are a minority and focus on the work," she said. "I often think I succeeded because I refused to see that there was any problem. I once said that the most important characteristics are a passion for science, a good sense of humor and a failure to recognize reality."

Marilyn Agbeko '06, who plans to major in operations research and financial engineering, is a good example of the kind of student that Tilghman describes.

"It's [engineering is] what I have chosen to do because I know that I can do it, so it's not really intimidating," she said. It is still difficult, she noted, but the challenge lies in mastering the material and not in overcoming gender discrimination.

Female graduate students in engineering often experience an exaggerated form of the same problems they faced in their undergraduate years, Klawe said.

"On average, there will be only one female in a group. All of a sudden, you're the only one and you're much more lonely as a graduate student," she said.

Female students make up roughly 23 percent of Princeton's graduate program in engineering, Klawe said — almost ten percent fewer women than the University's undergraduate program. This drop in females in engineering continues as women begin to choose careers.

In response to the question of why this occurs, Tilghman said, "I have always worried that the answer is the perceived difficulty of balancing a scientific career and family. For women this is a much larger concern than for men."

According to Tilghman, an effective approach to bridging the undergraduate gender gap would involve several steps.

"There is no 'silver bullet' that will bridge the disparity," she said. "Hiring more women faculty as role models, improving the quality of the instruction in the first-year curriculum, providing good mentoring of young students by older students, all these things make a small but measurable difference."

Klawe said she sees further hope in introducing engineering to both females and males by means of engineering classes designed with both A.B. and B.S.E. students in mind. Such classes are already quite popular at the University, and Klawe said she hopes to make them even more of a standard in the future.

In reference to a student's choice of major, Klawe said that "the whole decision is often based on one experience." An interesting engineering class may unexpectedly hook an A.B. student. Likewise, such a class may be necessary confirmation for students unsure of their commitment to engineering.

Having sat in on several of these classes, Klawe said that she found them exciting and wished she could spend more time in these courses. She remembered one especially neat class where she observed how students used a visual programming language to program a light-sensored car.

Classes that expose students to the real-world applications of science and engineering might be essential in attracting and retaining a gender-balanced student body. The goal is to supplement academics with a supportive and motivational learning environment. The question is not necessarily females' ability to be successful engineering students. In grade school, females usually perform just as well as males in science classes, if not better.

"The explicit barriers and opinions [of female engineers] of 20 years ago are rapidly disappearing," said Sturm, "but there are still lots of cultural barriers . . . which are harder to solve than explicit ones."

Considerable progress has been made over the last several decades, but women are still underrepresented in an industry that is continually expanding in size and importance.