Girls in Engineering: Will I Be Surrounded by Guys?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers around the experiences and concerns of girls entering engineering programs, particularly regarding the gender imbalance in these fields. Participants share their thoughts on the social dynamics, potential challenges, and personal experiences related to being a minority gender in engineering and physics classes.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Exploratory

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express concern about being surrounded predominantly by male peers in engineering programs, citing statistics that suggest a gender imbalance (75-80% male in some cases).
  • Others suggest that social interactions are not limited to classmates, and that there will be opportunities to meet a diverse range of people on campus.
  • A participant shares their experience of a physics class with a significant gender disparity, noting that the few girls often become the center of attention.
  • Some participants discuss the variation in gender ratios across different engineering disciplines, with biomedical engineering mentioned as having a more balanced gender distribution.
  • Concerns are raised about participating in engineering projects, particularly for girls who feel they may lack experience or fear being the only female on a team.
  • There are reflections on societal perceptions of gender in STEM fields, with some arguing that girls often feel they have to prove themselves more than their male counterparts.
  • One participant mentions that college admissions may be more lenient for girls in STEM, prompting a discussion about the implications of this on perceived abilities and self-confidence.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree that there is a noticeable gender imbalance in engineering and physics programs, but opinions vary on the implications of this and how it affects social dynamics. The discussion remains unresolved regarding the best ways to navigate these challenges and whether gender should be a significant concern in these environments.

Contextual Notes

Limitations include varying definitions of gender balance across different engineering disciplines and the personal experiences that shape participants' views on gender dynamics in academic settings.

  • #61
Oh really, lol, ok :)

But...I see where you are coming from here too. :smile:
 
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  • #62
haha yes,

I'm a sucker for the last combo
 
  • #63
That's the best kind...

Beauty plus the brains,
not too many have
them both though
:biggrin::biggrin::biggrin::biggrin:
 
  • #64
Except me...
:cool:

hahaha

J/K I think for most people my 5 inch high hairdo is an acquired taste. It does however make my brain look bigger I suppose :)
 
  • #65
Haha, nice

5 in, wow, Do you have an afro or something? :smile:

Some might not go for it, but some do, who knows...
 
  • #66
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  • #67
Haha Nice, lol!

Yeah, I haven't got my pic up there yet either, my pics are kinda too big to get them on there, lol

Well I guess that means I'll have to fix it somehow, just not too sure yet...
 
  • #68
Yea Ifranview I think its called is what I used to get my myspace pics smaller so they would let me upload. It's a free image editing thing.
 
  • #69
Never have had to use it, I'll try it though.

All my myspace pics have been able to load when I tried them.

Thanks I'll give it a try in a minute though :smile:
 
  • #70
Flirtation Alert!
 
  • #71
What, would you rather have me be mean?

LOL, I don't think so :smile:

That's not like me to be mean anyhow, so it's all good :biggrin: Hope there isn't any harm or anything...
 
  • #72
Just keeeding!:biggrin:
 
  • #73
Cool... So, are you an engineer then?
 
  • #74
Haha

Everyone go back to your physics work!

NOW!:rolleyes:
 
  • #75
I'm done with mine, I have a mid term at noon though :)
 
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  • #76
Nice. I have my final next week. So I'm studying all night tonight.
 
  • #77
Sweetness. I tend to freak when it somes to test time though, it sucks, lol. So, I tend to do a little worse than expected, haha.
 
  • #78
Yea same here. I had a chemistry test yesturday on Entropy and Gibbs Free Energy and I didn't believe myself that a -DeltaG implied a Positive entropy so I derived it from some equation over and over again to convince my self each time it popped up. I get really nervous on tests.
 
  • #79
Haha, nice. I am one of those people who take all the time they can get, and because I freak and don't trust my first instinct, I often don't get all the way completed. It can be so frustrating, especially, when all the other guys, it just seems to come naturally for them, and they can sit there calmly without having wondering eyes to lose concentration, and not have so much stress build up too. Though, sometime I wonder if the guys are freaking out as much as me, but just are trying to be "macho", lol, and not have it show, so it makes me freak out even more or something...
 
  • #80
mcknia07 said:
Cool... So, are you an engineer then?

Sort of. My ilk observe cognitive processes in humans and animals, and then try to reverse engineer them and describe them as computational models.
 
  • #81
It depends on how well they show it. Like everyone probably saw me and was like wow "He's writing a lot, he must be good at this stuff," Whereas I'm actually just writing the same stuff over and over again because I'm freaking. But it guarantees me that I'll do my best so I guess its all good.
 
  • #82
viet_jon said:
I'll most likely get accepted for september in Engineering, I won't be surrounded by guys all the time, will I?
Think of it as a preperation for work :smile:

Gosh that sounds bad.

Do they run any make-up classes there?

(that's not sexist because men wear make-up too).
 
  • #83
Wow, that sounds pretty complex, lol.
 
  • #84
Yeah, I mean it's not bad to do that. I do that sometimes too, and occationaly I am right in what I have wrote down, and then just start plugging stuff in for all the formulas once you know you have all the variables/ It can be pretty helpful to think awhile before writing stuff down too...just kind of depends though, lol :)
 
  • #85
mcknia07 said:
That's the best kind...

Beauty plus the brains,
not too many have
them both though
:biggrin::biggrin::biggrin::biggrin:

ALL of the women at PF have both. :biggrin:

Since we have a nice audience of women in science here, I'm going to recommend to all of you...study groups! (And the same to the men here who want to meet more women...just keep it focused on studying, and let nature take its course AFTER the regularly scheduled study session.) Women do well in cooperative learning settings, so study groups can be more effective for women than studying alone. You do still need to study alone, of course, and show up prepared for the group meetings, but that added group discussion can really solidify your knowledge and recall.
 
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  • #86
rohanprabhu said:
ohh.. never thought abt that...

Hey, i thurt i was the only one on here that people were laughing at...nice comment

:)
 
  • #87
well there are about 5 girls in my aerospace class out of about 50 of us, but then again I am in london studying...i take it ur not...figures seem the same everywhere, not many girls, but that doesn't mean you should give it up if its what you want to do. why should it matter about girl/boy ratios, I am sure there are many successful women engineers out there so why can't you be one of them?
 
  • #88
amz8601 said:
well there are about 5 girls in my aerospace class out of about 50 of us, but then again I am in london studying...i take it ur not...figures seem the same everywhere, not many girls, but that doesn't mean you should give it up if its what you want to do. why should it matter about girl/boy ratios, I am sure there are many successful women engineers out there so why can't you be one of them?

Indeed, it wasn't all that long ago that the ratios of women to men in biology and medicine were just as bad (I remember similar pep talks from my dad about going into medicine when I was a kid and first started considering "being a doctor when I grow up" as women today are talking about regarding engineering and physics), and now the women are outnumbering the men! If you enjoy it and are good at it, go for it, and then do what you can to mentor other young women who might be intimidated by so few women in the field, and you too may see in your lifetime a shift toward gender equality in the field. I think we're pretty much at a point where it's women's own inhibitions about perceived inequalities interfering more than your classmates or professors will. As you can see from the OP of this thread...the men really would like more women in their classes.
 
  • #89
Moonbear said:
Indeed, it wasn't all that long ago that the ratios of women to men in biology and medicine were just as bad (I remember similar pep talks from my dad about going into medicine when I was a kid and first started considering "being a doctor when I grow up" as women today are talking about regarding engineering and physics), and now the women are outnumbering the men! If you enjoy it and are good at it, go for it, and then do what you can to mentor other young women who might be intimidated by so few women in the field, and you too may see in your lifetime a shift toward gender equality in the field. I think we're pretty much at a point where it's women's own inhibitions about perceived inequalities interfering more than your classmates or professors will. As you can see from the OP of this thread...the men really would like more women in their classes.

totally agree, tbh us guys look up to the girls and treat em like one of the guys, total respect for them since they are doing "a mans degree" as some would view it. but like moonbear says i think people are more scared of what others think and amplify their paranoid thoughts until they are defeated...if you ask me i think you should go for it and ignore the people who say "its a mans field".

not saying this is you, but some people spend their lives worrying about what others think and before its too late they realize what a waste of a life...

do what YOU want, not what people say, not what your parents say, coz hell i know too many people wanting to commit suicide for decisions their parents made instead of them...ask around, take in advice but at the end of the day its ur life and ur decision that should matter!

sorry...dont want to sound all philosophical and deep...just feel passionate about this since i seen people make mistakes.

:) I am sure if you follow ur heart and mind you won't be one of them
 
  • #90
Any physics single female hotties here? lol.
 

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