The purpose of this institutional ethnography was to better understand the experiences of undergraduate women in math and physics in order to identify and explore the institutional practices that coordinated their daily work. Through the framework of feminist standpoint theory, I collected student and faculty interviews, observations, and textual analysis. Data analysis followed Carspecken's process of ethnographic data analysis. Findings indicate that participants were challenged by conflicts between STEM expectations and institutional expectations, such as scholarship GPA requirements and high school academic background. The result is that while women persist, they face stress, anxiety, and discomfort. This study was limited by time and space; findings were not intended to communicate broad generalizability, but, through the framework of feminist standpoint theory, to focus on experiences of the marginalized group. Recommendations to improve the chilly climate include creating a STEM educational environment that supports, validates, and gives women an equal voice.