ERIC Number: ED509653
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2010
Pages: 134
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: ISBN-978-1-8799-2240-2
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Why So Few? Women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
Hill, Catherine; Corbett, Christianne; St. Rose, Andresse
American Association of University Women
The number of women in science and engineering is growing, yet men continue to outnumber women, especially at the upper levels of these professions. In elementary, middle, and high school, girls and boys take math and science courses in roughly equal numbers, and about as many girls as boys leave high school prepared to pursue science and engineering majors in college. Yet fewer women than men pursue these majors. Among first-year college students, women are much less likely than men to say that they intend to major in science, technology, engineering, or math (STEM). By graduation, men outnumber women in nearly every science and engineering field, and in some, such as physics, engineering, and computer science, the difference is dramatic, with women earning only 20 percent of bachelor's degrees. Women's representation in science and engineering declines further at the graduate level and yet again in the transition to the workplace. Drawing on a large and diverse body of research, this report presents eight recent research findings that provide evidence that social and environmental factors contribute to the under-representation of women in science and engineering. (Contains 21 figures, 13 footnotes, and a bibliography.) [This report was supported by the Letitia Corum Memorial Fund, the AAUW Mooneen Lecce Giving Circle, and the Eleanor Roosevelt Fund.]
Descriptors: Women Scientists, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, Majors (Students), Disproportionate Representation, Sex Fairness, Gender Bias, Females, Computer Science, Social Influences, Role of Education, Family Influence, Student Recruitment, Peer Influence, Peer Relationship, Career Guidance
American Association of University Women. 1111 Sixteenth Street NW, Washington, DC 20036. Tel: 800-326-2289; Tel: 202-728-7602; Fax: 202-463-7169; e-mail: foundation@aauw.org; Web site: http://www.aauw.org
Publication Type: Numerical/Quantitative Data; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education; Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: National Science Foundation
Authoring Institution: American Association of University Women
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
IES Cited: ED544470