From Girls in High School to Women in Civil Engineering Firms

An increasing number of women are completing science and engineering degrees, according to several top universities and colleges in the U.S. In 2015, more than 50% of bachelor in engineering graduates at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology were women, according to federal data. In Yale University, 49% of engineering graduates were women.

There are compelling reasons as to why more women opt to pursue science and engineering degrees. For one, science and engineering fields want more women because performance studies show positive social gains. Increasing the number of female engineers improves gendered innovations. In the case of civil engineering firms, this can result in public structures that respond better to diverse gender mobility needs and practices.

Furthermore, global studies show that higher gender and racial/ethnic diversity improves organizational performance outcomes. General knowledge increases too because women from different races and ethnicities can offer new or expanded forms of knowledge and practices.

Finally, more women in engineering fields reduces sexism in both related higher education levels and workplaces. Their presence erodes gender stereotypes about women. Likewise, they tend to advocate greater work-life balance for parents, thereby decreasing the impact of giving birth and child care on female engineers only.

More women should work in engineering fields because it can boost relevant gendered innovations, expand general knowledge, and decrease sexism in higher education and workplaces. Fortunately, numerous studies suggest that women can be encouraged to follow a career in engineering early on.

Girls Education, Mathematics, and Science

Female and male students generally do not show gender disparity in terms of standardized tests in mathematics and science, but other demographic gaps exist. Large gaps are present across racial and ethnic lines, as well as family income, based on the secondary research of the National Girls Collaborative Project. White and Asian/Pacific Islander students and those who belong to higher income families scored higher than black, Hispanic, American, and low-income counterparts.

More whites and Asian/Pacific Islander students take advanced math and science courses compared to minority and low-income students. Minority students who had poor test scores and did not take advanced subjects are often poor and do not have college-educated parents. These statistics indicate intersections across race, ethnicity, and social class that can affect minority women and men alike.

Women in Engineering Education

Just a few years ago, a few number of women chose the path of engineering. Back in 2012, for instance, minority women obtained only 11.2% of bachelor degrees in the field of science and engineering.

Women were underrepresented in engineering education across undergraduate and post-graduate levels in general and for minority groups in particular because of various individual and social factors, including lack of confidence in one’s ability to pursue these degrees and to compete in these fields, gender stereotypes about girls’ scientific, technical, and mathematical abilities, absence or limited number of female mentors, racism and sexism in college and the workplace, and the career impact of bearing and taking care of children.

Based on the latest numbers, however, these factors are no longer hindrances for those who wish to follow a career in engineering.

Women in Engineering Fields

Women compose half of the college-educated workforce, yet they make up only 29% of the total science and engineering firm population. Only 17.5% of these female employees are civil, architectural, and sanitary engineers. In Carnegie Mellon, majority of undergraduate civil engineering students are women. However, the rest of state and private universities do not show similar gender composition.

To increase women in civil engineering firms, it is essential to address hindrances at the educational and workplace level. From poverty to lack of mentors, as well as racism and sexism, these obstacles must be identified and resolved, in order to encourage a greater number of girls to pursue these fields and for female engineers to stay in the workplace for better work-life balance and the eradication of discrimination in civil engineering firms.

Sources:

“State of Girls and Women in STEM,” National Girls Collaborative, 2016
“Why It’s Crucial to Get More Women Into Science,” Marguerite Del Giudice, National Geographic, November 8, 2014
“Women break barriers in engineering and computer science at some top colleges,” Nick Anderson, The Washington Post, September 16, 2016