Boys Club Glass Ceiling

Today’s college students have the opportunity and freedom to choose their major and their career path. Many factors influence the decision of a college student’s career paths including background, general interests, personal strengths, time commitment, and job outlook. Although many important decisions are made in college, one of the most important is the choice of major and career track. Out of hundreds of majors the science and engineering fields are under-represented by women. Although the numbers of women in science technology, engineering, and mathematics, STEM, majors has been increasing in the past years, women still are in the minority in the STEM fields. In her study, Lona Whitmarsh

Before women to get more involved in the STEM fields women first have to go and get degrees in STEM undergraduate programs. One way to help change this is the lack of female role models. Girls need role models to show that they can be successful in STEM fields. If there are such strong gender stereotypes it might be discouraging women from pursuing STEM education and STEM jobs. It is complicated to get young women role models because the people who are part of the hiring team said that were less likely to say they would hire the female applicants overall and that they would offered them lower salaries and fewer mentoring opportunities. This is a problem because women will be less likely to want to get into these fields because they will have to work so much harder to get the same recognition as the males. Young girls will be more interested in getting into one of these fields where they fear comfortable. Young girls need a role model like Emily Roebling who studied math and science and became the chief engineer in the building of the Brooklyn Bridge in 1860. Another reason that girls are less likely to pursue these majors is gender stereotyping, and less family-friendly flexibility in the STEM fields. Across all STEM fields, female PhDs have lower rates of patenting and entrepreneurship than do male PhDs. This difference is most pronounced in physics, astronomy and the computer sciences, in which women earned only 1 in 5 PhDs. There is a need to encourage and support women in

The stated prerogative is to introduce slow yet lasting change and to integrate more women and people of color within the STEM field; however, the plan for change, and the reason for its perceived need to be slow is nowhere addressed; , suggesting that it is rather the reluctance of men to relinquish control and allow feminization of the field (Tepperman and Curtis, 2012). Reports of these initiatives claim to be struggling struggle in attracting and keeping women within the STEM field. Yet by shifting the blame on women, the inaction taken by scientific institutions to reform the patriarchal ideals dominating the scientific realm is justified (Tepperman and Curtis, 2012). In addition, the economic paradigm that western society is built around is one that necessitates inequality to function. The Neoliberal welfare is instrumental in constructing gender

51 percent of the United States is female but only 34.4 percent of doctors are women. While 90.4 percent of nurses are female (“Women in Medicine”; “Male Nurses Becoming”), the women who do become doctors earn an astounding 25 percent less than their male counterparts (Groves). These staggering figures are only a single piece in the larger overall lack of women in STEM, or science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, which has remained prevalent since the beginning of these fields. Although women are underrepresented in these STEM fields, this is not due to ineptitude, but instead it is a result of the force of societal stereotypes coupled with their wider range of abilities. The recent increase in women’s association with STEM seems

The STEM fields are diverse and evolving constantly, with the advancement of civil rights in regards to women as well as the education of the public to this issue, it is likely that there will come a time when women and men can be equally represented in these disciplines. The importance of studying the gender gap between men and women in STEM is to learn how to confront gender biases in these fields. Conclusive evidence has shown that diversity in science will likely yield positive results. Findings from the Journal of the Royal Society Interface state that:

Women have struggled in establishing their rightful place in the STEM environment because of this image of a family where the mother is the chief caretaker of the children. Society believes that a woman’s first priority

During this day and age women in STEM is a very tough career. One question we bring to mind is does a female student having a female science teach motivate them to fill in those shoes? The answer to me is yes because women are starting to get rid of that stereotype about how they can’t feed off each other. Especially if the girl’s mom was a science teacher that would help a lot because women tend to look at their mother’s footsteps first. Also the pioneer’s women in STEM need to be brought upon more in history class. In order to get more women into the Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics field, women and young girls need these type of people to be brought upon in order to spark inspiration?.

This report navigates the current state of STEM demographic in the country. It examines the reasons why there are less females undertaking STEM majors and gives recommendations on the problems. A brief history on STEM is outlined and the discussion follows with in depth analysis on the subject. STEM is a very critical education discipline with an importance in the economy of the country. Much as it is important, few students choose a career path in STEM. Although, there are more than 50% female students in Colleges and Universities, 12% take STEM related course. Why is this? This report is a compilation of empirical data collected in journals on the same subject explaining

Despite earning just over 50% of all science related bachelor’s degrees in recent years, women actually earn less than 20% of engineering degrees and hold around 15% of all engineering jobs (“Statistics”), thus being significantly outnumbered by men in these such fields. Science fields in general are largely disproportionate in terms of gender, though the numbers fluctuate as statistics get more specific. For instance, of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields, women hold the highest percent of jobs in life sciences (yet still below 50%) and the lowest in engineering at 30% lower rates than that of the aforementioned (National Science Board). This leads many to question the reasons behind such unbalanced statistics, and although it is nearly impossible to pinpoint one definitive cause, it can be agreed upon that there are several influencing factors. Among these are stereotypes, implicit biases, college and workplace environments (Hill, Catherine), pay differences, and of course,

areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics employers are not getting enough women (Pozniak). High school girls only represent 17 percent of computer science Advance Placement (AP) test takers (O'Shea). The most significant group of minorities who are behind in earning computer technology degrees and working in science and mathematical professions are women. “Historically, women’s low representation in science and engineering was said to be due in large part of their lack of ability, interest, or both” (Horning 30). However, this is no longer a true fact according to Ward. Some suggestions to increasing the amount of women in sciences include introducing already present women faculty as mentors. Over the last three decades,

“The big drop-off in numbers for the hard sciences apparently begins at the point of graduate work at the Ph.D. level, and continues through the tenure-track procedure and out the other end where even successful women scientists are voluntarily leaving these fields in larger numbers than men” (Hill, Rogers, 4) While bachelor’s and master’s degrees do have a large demographic of women, the more successful and well-known role models would likely either have a Ph.D or they would keep their jobs in the field. And if more women than men leave their careers in mathematics, girls are left with less role models. Also, one may argue that because “Currently women comprise about half the M.D.’s, two-thirds of psychology Ph.D.’s, and three-quarters of veterinary medicine doctorates” (Hill, Rogers, 1) that classroom environment, at least at a post-secondary level of education, is not a problem. However, medicine is not the only field of science. Yes, there are a lot of girls that choose to go into medicine, but what about physics?

A glass ceiling is defined as a barrier that prevents a particular gender from rising reaching a particular hierarchical level in a workplace. Today the glass ceiling is still very intact especially in the case of women. Despite the fact that women and the feminist have been fighting for their rights in the society for so long which they have been gaining in the recent few years, it can be true to say that the glass ceiling for the women still exists for particular reasons (Cocco, 2008). The reasons include the fact that men still hold the top workplace positions and inequalities in the paternity as well as the maternity leaves. Furthermore, the stereotype against women is not 100% gone. For the men, the glass ceiling does not exist. These can be brought down by the adoption of the zero tolerance policies for activities such as discrimination.

Women who are married and have kids are less hired and make less money than men who have a family and kids, which such a bias make men more advantage in their workplace. In fact, there seems to be evidence show that the faculty members have such a bias against women in science, which these kind of bias effect women to not equate or promote to the scientific field. Bias is everywhere and anyone can have it even if people try to prevent it, bias still exists and against women in science. Even, a child could make such a bias toward women in leadership and about herself such as presenting herself as a female, in knowing the gender stereotype about women in leadership. In fact, simply having a role model and a representation it not effective against gender stereotype or the powerful cultural transmission of bias. The way to tackle this unconscious bias is to have a more-rational decision process in so, in control of our behavior, or suppress the undesired behavior of individuals. So, to increase more women in science or in any occupation, cease any general or unconscious bias and stereotype that comparing women against male

Believe it or not, the old phrase, “A woman’s place is in the home” is still alive and well in the scientific community, as the dramatic gender-bias study published last September in the Proceedings of the National Academy of the Sciences shows. Today, it’s “A woman’s place is not in the lab.” The path I have taken over the past four years has proven to me that women can be just as comfortable in STEM careers as they were 75 years ago as housewives. My place – where I feel most content – is definitely in the lab.

STEM pathways being known as manly effect women in a negative way. Women don’t want to feel less powerful when they work beside men in these career fields. These