Integrating Women Into STEM

All though women in STEM face many challenges as a whole, a question being posed in this study is whether or not women in math and physics intensive studies face unique obstacles. Underrepresentation in STEM seems a stubborn fact of the matter, however, it is not even across the board. The number of women present in the life sciences (sciences such as biology, environmental studies, health care, etc.), both at the academic and professional level, is much higher than the number of women present in fields that focus heavily on math, physics, and engineering. More and more women are choosing to pursue post-secondary education and enter the specialized workforce; in 2010 the AAUW found “Women currently earn over half of all doctoral degrees

However, of that 48%, only 24% of them are involved in a STEM field. However, statistics are saying now, more than ever, women are pursuing STEM careers. Yet, what happens behind the scenes while earning your degree? My mother has experienced a prime example of exactly what happens when women attempt to pursue a STEM career. She had decided on taking a programming course in college. Long story short, she got to her assigned computer and began to design her screen like the creative woman she is. Her professor walked up to her found it unrighteous to have her computer screen pink when everyone else's where "manly" colors. He suggested that she goes to the counselor to change courses since technology was "manly" thing. Sadly, she listened along with many other women. I say that because "...nearly a third of women in science, engineering and technology (S.E.T.) fields say they are likely to quit within a year," (Sherbin, ...Bias in Their Labs). It's unfortunate that women all over feel that they are not worthy because of their gender or their lack of "manliness." STEM fields aren't a manly thing, they need to be identified as gender neutral profession, as every profession should

There is inequality between men and and women in things like STEM (Science, technology, engineering and mathematics). Over the years inequality has gotten better in education but it still occurs in this program. According to an article in Maclean’s magazine, in Canada there are fewer women earning PhD’s in Science than the UK and United States of America. Young women need to be encouraged to strive for positions in the workforce that only young men typically strive for. The science and engineering classes can be intimidating, so more should be done to influence

The increased need for more workers has led to less sexist decisions and more decisions being base off of qualifications. “As a result... women's share is supposed to increase from 46.4 to 46.8 percent,” Source A (Zupek). This source state that the amount of men and women in the workplace may soon be equal. A contrary justification would be that certain genders have specific qualities and their careers should pertain to that. Well, this argument can be easily disproved. Anyone can have any characteristic. Even men can have feminine

Furthermore, gender inequality is rising instead of declining. For all female workers, (including people who are working part time), the wage gap has risen from 19.6% to 19.7%. This highlights that society is moving backwards and is becoming more intolerant; is this the reputation we want for our country? Later in life women are less likely to study engineering or science later in life. This demonstrates women being underestimated and perhaps society is discouraging them into aiming for jobs that have been predominantly male in the past. Schools show that (early on in life) women have, statistically, far more potential than men, so what is it that subdues this? Social attitudes concerning women and their potential essentially hold a certain level of accountability for this. Not only does this result in women being oppressed and not achieving their full potential, it also devalues society as we are deprived of their aptitudes.

In early American history, society believed that women did not have a place in education and high-level learning. They were told not to bother their brains with such advanced thinking. Middle and upper class women learned to read and write, but their education ended there. A woman’s place was said to be in the home, cooking, sewing, and taking care of the children. In the case of upper class women, their “to-do” list was cut even shorter with the servants present to do the work.

I’ve always believed that women should have the same opportunities as men and can be just as successful leaders in society. I briefly looked into the military, took the ASVAB entrance exam and considered becoming a deployed doctor; however, I realized my passion lies within something else. Engineering and science, two programs that mostly consist of men, has become what I strive for. Within the past couple weeks I was able to shadow and work in the lab with several Sanford Hospital researchers and I found that although women are less represented in the science/engineering field, we can still achieve the same potential that any man

While this bill undoubtedly aligned with the mission and purpose of women’s colleges, there remains an unbalanced amount of representation of women in STEM programs and careers. “Globally, women remain particularly behind in participation at elite institutions and in traditional ‘male’ fields of study including science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, or STEM” (Renn, 2014, p. 3). While the very existence of women’s colleges asserts their right to belong within realms of higher education, the work towards equity and inclusion must take place in all facets of life. “Even where women outnumber men in undergraduate enrollments and enjoy full access to higher education, women’s institutions act symbolically to remind society that in many other domains of public and private life, gender equality remains elusive” (Renn, 2014, p. 125).

and that is why there may be a difference in compensation. Even though the numbers of women who major in those fields isn’t large, the idea that women don’t major in them is false. They are just as equally capable of completing the same tasks but coworkers and bosses might think differently. The problem is more profound in the highest paying jobs women suffer the most wage gaps. The percentage comparison to both men and women is high. It’s not the industry, its society that undermines women’s abilities. Gender stereotypes are hard to give up, and at times we are all likely to engage in stereotyping each other. As a society, we need to encourage people to go beyond stereotypes and recognize the contributions regardless of the sexes.

“They” say, “We’ve come a long way baby!” “They” are both correct and incorrect at the same time. While it is true that women have come a long way from June Cleaver and the typical 50’s housewife to the modern two parent working household, statistically, it would take women approximately one extra day of work per week to earn the same as their male counterpart. So, while women have begun to work in higher paying professional and managerial jobs that before were typically held by men; they are paid less. This is gender discrimination and is commonly known as the Gender Wage Gap. There are many arguments as to why there is a wage gap between men and women; there are those who argue that women are taking lower-paying jobs, so they can attend to the needs of their families. Others argue that women are purposely choosing fields that pay less. One thing is clear, though: a gender wage gap exists, and if steps are not taken to remedy this situation, women may never see equal pay for equal work.

There are many issues going on in the public sphere, but the one I want to address would be if women are equally qualified as men for higher paying professional jobs. One text that helps support this issue is a video I found on TED Talk given by Debbie Sterling. In the video, Debbie asked the audience a series of questions about engineers, and then she goes on and explains how difficult it is for women to become engineers because they are set to a social bias. Debbie Sterling discussed that most girls initially view themselves as being a princess and more suited for traditional female roles in the workforce. This behavior and attitude begins at a very early stage and can be associated with how they played as a child and adapted to the social norm. I picked this specific text because I

Today, America has progressed tremendously when it comes to mathematics, science, technology and engineering (STEM). While former President Barack Obama signed the Lilly Ledbetter Act for equal rights and equal pay, woman still lag behind. Also, as Hilary Clinton broke the shattered the glass ceiling by becoming the Presidential nomination for the Democratic Party, she still was not able to break the glass ceiling. I have watched multiple women work tiresome hours to support their families, yet be treated with less respect because they are a woman. I want to be able to live in a world where I get the same compensation as a man for doing the same job. My gender is not a reflection of my work ethic and should not be used against me or other

In recent years however, truly starting in with Generation X or so, women began being taught that they could do whatever and be whatever they wished to if they simply applied themselves. I think this a great thing and a step in the right direction on the long road to equality, while I do agree with equality there a few things that I think are rightfully in place to certain extent. One being the fact of men making more on average than women, I believe that the fact that men on average take more dangerous or hazardous jobs than women do, i.e; underwater welding, commercial fishing, law enforcement. Not to say that women do not perform these jobs or that men perform better in these careers but saying that these are not the typical jobs to see a woman do. However, when it comes to the more mundane day to day jobs, i.e; office jobs and the like, men and women that share the same positions and responsibilities should receive the same

There are still the remains of barriers mentioned above that make it harder for women go into certain industries. In most cases men can view women seriously as their peer nowadays. However, the balance of family can professional life is still a concern for most professional women. Also, the stereotype ideas for “being a women” or “being a women in STEM” are still prevalent. Such examples can be seen in the recent trending campaigns on social media like “#I Look like an engineer”. Today’s society is more tolerent towards women in medical and science but there is certainly room for

In today’s society, there are more men engaged in the science fields than women. With that being said, this could cause the commonness of gender stereotypes. For instance, science is there for men and not women. Besides the social life of others, these stereotypes can also be shown in during the education process. Stereotypes are mainly visible by the use of language, the methods of teaching, gender and the attitude that is given. The main goal of this article was to tell whether the science education contained gender biased. This analysis thoroughly explains men are more into science profession and women are more likely to become teachers. In this article, men and women shows a stereotypical representation in online science education