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From page 14... ... 14 2 Recruiting Women Students Recruitment of students into science and engineering (S&E) pro-grams is an interactive process, reflecting the intersection of auniversity's efforts to enroll students and students' desires to attend a particular institution. Read the entire page →
From page 15... ... RECRUITING WOMEN STUDENTS 15 women to undergraduate and graduate education in S&E can be assessed by means of information that compares female high school students interested in S&E with female undergraduates in S&E. The working hypothesis is that while both groups are likely growing, the ratio of the former to the latter remains larger. Read the entire page →
From page 16... ... 16 T A B L E 2 -1 P er ce nt ag e of H ig h Sc ho ol G ra d u at es T ak in g Se le ct ed M at he m at ic s an d S ci en ce C ou rs es in H ig h Sc ho ol , b y Se x: 1 99 0, 1 99 4, a nd 1 99 8 19 90 19 94 19 98 C ou rs e T ot al M al e Fe m al e T ot al M al e Fe m al e T ot al M al e Fe m al e M at h em at ic s G eo m et ry 63 .2 62 .1 64 .2 70 .0 64 .3 72 .2 75 .1 73 .7 77 .3 A lg eb ra I I 52 .9 51 .0 54 .6 61 .1 57 .7 61 .6 61 .7 59 .8 63 .7 T ri go n om et ry 9. Read the entire page →
From page 17... ... RECRUITING WOMEN STUDENTS 17 Tables 2-1 and 2-2 suggest that a large and growing proportion of female secondary students appear to be interested in S&E. Overall enrollments in both public and private secondary schools have risen over time, suggesting that greater numbers of females are enrolling in secondary education (US DOE, 2004) Read the entire page →
From page 18... ... 18 TO RECRUIT AND ADVANCE WOMEN STUDENTS AND FACULTY TABLE 2-3 Percentage of Bachelor's Degrees Awarded to Women, by Field, 2001 Field Percent All fields 57.4 S&E 50.6 Sciences 55.9 Biological/agricultural sciences 57.3 Computer sciences 27.6 Earth, atmospheric, and ocean sciences 40.9 Mathematics/statistics 48.0 Physical sciences 41.7 Psychology 77.5 Social sciences 54.8 Engineering 20.1 Non-S&E 60.5 SOURCE: NSF (2004c) Read the entire page →
From page 19... ... RECRUITING WOMEN STUDENTS 19 • For American Indian/Alaskan Native females, there has been a slight increase from about 26 percent to about 27 percent. For all races or ethnicities, male freshmen are more likely than female freshmen to intend to major in S&E, generally defined, and in specific fields such as engineering. Read the entire page →
From page 20... ... 20 TO RECRUIT AND ADVANCE WOMEN STUDENTS AND FACULTY TABLE 2-4 Freshmen Intending to Major in S&E, by Race/Ethnicity, Sex, and Field: Selected Years, 1977-2002 (percentage distribution) Race and Ethnicity/Sex/Field 1977 1981 1984 White 30.0 32.7 32.8 Men 39.5 43.9 42.9 Physical sciences 4.5 3.8 3.2 Biological/agricultural sciences 8.2 6.7 6.3 Mathematics/statistics 1.3 0.9 1.1 Computer sciences 2.1 7.2 6.5 Social/behavioral sciences 6.6 5.8 6.3 Engineering 16.8 19.5 19.5 Women 20.3 22.5 23.2 Physical sciences 1.5 1.3 1.3 Biological/agricultural sciences 6.2 4.8 5.0 Mathematics/statistics 1.1 1.0 1.3 Computer sciences 1.2 4.5 3.0 Social/behavioral sciences 8.4 7.6 9.2 Engineering 1.9 3.3 3.4 Asian American 43.1 49.4 49.6 Men 55.6 60.7 61.0 Physical sciences 6.3 5.4 5.2 Biological/agricultural sciences 10.0 7.9 10.9 Mathematics/statistics 1.6 1.2 1.1 Computer sciences 3.5 6.3 6.1 Social/behavioral sciences 4.5 3.4 5.1 Engineering 29.7 36.5 32.6 Women 29.8 37.2 37.9 Physical sciences 3.4 2.7 3.2 Biological/agricultural sciences 9.3 9.2 10.6 Mathematics/statistics 1.3 1.6 1.2 Computer sciences 3.6 7.2 5.6 Social/behavioral sciences 7.0 7.0 6.9 Engineering 5.2 9.5 10.4 African American 26.5 33.0 30.9 Men 34.7 40.5 37.0 Physical sciences 2.0 1.6 1.1 Biological/agricultural sciences 5.2 4.1 5.0 Mathematics/statistics 0.7 0.8 0.5 Computer sciences 2.7 10.5 10.5 Social/behavioral sciences 9.0 6.0 7.1 Engineering 15.1 17.5 12.8 Women 20.8 27.9 26.8 Physical sciences 0.9 1.0 0.9 Biological/agricultural sciences 3.8 3.8 4.9 Mathematics/statistics 0.7 0.8 0.7 Computer sciences 1.9 9.3 8.9 Social/behavioral sciences 11.1 8.3 7.6 Engineering 2.4 4.7 3.8 Read the entire page →
From page 21... ... RECRUITING WOMEN STUDENTS 21 1987 1990 1993 1996 1999 2002 27.8 29.3 31.7 32.3 31.7 31.3 35.6 37.3 39.8 40.4 40.0 39.6 2.8 3.2 3.3 2.7 2.4 2.8 5.3 5.8 8.1 8.4 7.1 6.2 1.0 1.0 0.9 0.8 0.7 0.9 3.3 2.9 3.2 5.6 7.7 5.5 7.0 7.6 7.6 6.7 6.3 7.2 16.2 16.8 16.7 16.2 15.8 17.0 20.9 22.7 25.2 25.7 24.9 23.9 1.2 1.3 2.0 1.6 1.6 1.5 4.3 4.9 7.3 9.3 8.8 7.6 0.9 0.8 0.7 0.7 0.6 0.7 0.9 0.9 0.6 0.8 1.1 0.5 11.2 11.9 11.2 10.5 10.4 11.1 2.4 2.9 3.4 2.8 2.4 2.5 47.5 42.8 42.8 48.0 47.5 43.2 56.0 52.7 51.1 58.0 60.0 55.0 3.2 3.4 2.8 2.0 2.0 2.2 11.1 10.9 13.4 11.3 8.9 10.2 0.7 1.0 0.6 0.7 0.6 0.9 4.6 4.3 4.2 11.6 19.4 8.1 5.4 6.6 6.5 4.3 4.8 6.1 31.0 26.5 23.6 28.1 24.3 27.5 38.1 33.2 34.5 37.5 35.9 33.5 2.4 1.6 2.2 2.3 1.4 1.6 13.0 9.4 13.5 14.1 13.3 13.5 1.2 0.8 0.8 0.6 0.6 0.8 2.6 1.8 1.4 3.4 6.2 1.6 11.3 12.2 10.7 10.0 8.5 9.9 7.6 7.4 5.9 7.1 5.9 6.1 31.0 31.5 37.9 36.9 37.2 35.4 36.8 35.1 44.6 40.8 41.7 40.2 1.3 1.2 2.0 1.2 1.4 1.3 4.1 4.5 6.8 6.6 5.8 5.8 0.7 0.4 0.6 0.5 0.6 0.4 6.3 6.7 6.6 8.8 13.2 8.2 6.9 7.5 7.4 6.2 7.4 8.0 17.5 14.8 21.2 17.5 13.3 16.5 26.8 29.6 34.0 34.3 34.0 32.5 0.9 0.7 1.7 1.5 1.0 1.3 3.9 5.0 7.8 9.9 9.2 10.0 0.6 0.5 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.5 4.4 5.1 4.6 5.0 5.3 2.5 11.2 13.4 11.7 12.5 13.8 14.5 5.8 4.9 7.6 4.8 4.1 3.7 continued Read the entire page →
From page 22... ... 22 TO RECRUIT AND ADVANCE WOMEN STUDENTS AND FACULTY Mexican American/Chicano and Puerto Rican American 31.7 36.4 33.8 Men 39.4 44.1 43.1 Physical sciences 1.7 3.0 2.5 Biological/agricultural sciences 6.1 7.0 6.1 Mathematics/statistics 1.7 0.6 0.6 Computer sciences 2.9 5.9 9.3 Social and behavioral sciences 10.9 5.4 7.5 Engineering 16.1 22.2 17.1 Women 24.6 28.9 25.7 Physical sciences 0.7 1.7 1.4 Biological/agricultural sciences 5.8 6.6 5.9 Mathematics/statistics 0.3 0.3 0.8 Computer sciences 2.6 5.8 5.6 Social/behavioral sciences 13.1 9.4 7.8 Engineering 2.1 5.1 4.2 Other Latino NA NA NA Men NA NA NA Physical sciences NA NA NA Biological/agricultural sciences NA NA NA Mathematics/statistics NA NA NA Computer sciences NA NA NA Social/behavioral sciences NA NA NA Engineering NA NA NA Women NA NA NA Physical sciences NA NA NA Biological/agricultural sciences NA NA NA Mathematics/statistics NA NA NA Computer sciences NA NA NA Social/behavioral sciences NA NA NA Engineering NA NA NA American Indian/Alaskan Native 32.7 30.0 29.6 Men 37.9 39.5 32.8 Physical sciences 3.8 3.2 1.1 Biological/agricultural sciences 9.1 5.8 8.3 Mathematics/statistics 2.4 0.7 0.1 Computer sciences 1.5 4.0 3.3 Social/behavioral sciences 9.3 6.2 6.0 Engineering 11.8 19.6 14.0 Women 25.8 16.4 22.3 Physical sciences 1.3 1.1 0.8 Biological/agricultural sciences 5.9 3.5 8.3 Mathematics/statistics 0.7 0.1 1.0 Computer sciences 1.3 1.4 2.6 Social/behavioral sciences 11.8 8.1 7.5 Engineering 4.8 2.2 2.1 NA = not available. NOTE: The physical sciences include physics, chemistry, astronomy, and the earth, atmospheric, and ocean sciences. Read the entire page →
From page 24... ... 24 T A B L E 2 -5 Fr es hm en I nt en d in g to M aj or in S & E , b y Se x an d F ie ld : S el ec te d Y ea rs , 1 97 720 02 ( pe rc en ta ge d is tr ib u ti on ) Read the entire page →
From page 25... ... RECRUITING WOMEN STUDENTS 25 such as geometry, algebra II, and trigonometry, whereas men are slightly more likely to take precalculus and calculus. Men tend to take more mathematics earlier in their education. Read the entire page →
From page 26... ... 26 FI G U R E 2 -2 F em al e sh ar e of S & E g ra d u at e st u d en ts , b y fi el d : 1 99 1 an d 2 00 1. Read the entire page →
From page 27... ... RECRUITING WOMEN STUDENTS 27 ate schools increased from 133,737 to 168,468, and the percentage of female graduate students in science and engineering increased from 34 percent to 41 percent (NSF, 2003) Read the entire page →
From page 28... ... 28 TO RECRUIT AND ADVANCE WOMEN STUDENTS AND FACULTY 0 50,000 100,000 150,000 200,000 250,000 19 66 19 68 19 70 19 72 19 74 19 76 19 78 19 80 19 82 19 84 19 86 19 88 19 90 19 92 19 94 19 96 19 98 20 00 Bachelor's Degrees Master's Degrees Doctoral Degrees FIGURE 2-3 Number of women receiving bachelor's degrees, master's degrees, and doctoral degrees in science and engineering, 1966-2001. NOTE: Data for 1999 unavailable. Read the entire page →
From page 29... ... RECRUITING WOMEN STUDENTS 29 that are primarily seen as "male," a view that may be reinforced in a prospective female graduate student when visiting a campus where no faculty members in the department of interest are female, and there are few female graduates. An additional challenge for graduate recruiting lies in the potential for employment for individuals with baccalaureate degrees. Read the entire page →
From page 30... ... 30 TO RECRUIT AND ADVANCE WOMEN STUDENTS AND FACULTY A fuller discussion of challenges for postdocs in general is presented in the National Research Council publication, Enhancing the Postdoctoral Experience for Scientists and Engineers: A Guide for Postdoctoral Scholars, Advisers, Institutions, Funding Organizations, and Disciplinary Societies. RECRUITMENT STRATEGIES Undergraduate Student Recruitment In general, three principal strategies are used to recruit greater numbers of female undergraduate students: increasing preparation in secondary school, replacing the negative views and attitudes about S&E education (and careers) Read the entire page →
From page 31... ... RECRUITING WOMEN STUDENTS 31 Long-standing programs have evolved with successive iterations. The four institutions visited found that the introduction and success of a program often led to the development of another program that met different needs, which, in turn, led to still greater percentages of women. Read the entire page →
From page 32... ... 32 TO RECRUIT AND ADVANCE WOMEN STUDENTS AND FACULTY Signaling the Importance of Women At the institutional level, many different indicators, both direct and indirect, can set the climate and signal that the institution as a whole is committed to valuing and recruiting women. For prospective undergraduate students, an obvious indication is the willingness to commit significant resources to supporting women students such as dedicated space in a dormitory for women students in science and engineering. Read the entire page →
From page 33... ... RECRUITING WOMEN STUDENTS 33 In summary, institutional signaling can be demonstrated through • communications from top administrators; • highlighting gender inclusiveness as a goal of the institution; • creating an office or committee charged with promoting gender inclusiveness; and • monitoring student concerns through such things as climate surveys and focus groups. Enhancing S&E Education and Outreach Efforts at the K-12 Level One theme that resonates throughout this guide is the idea that the education-to-career pathway is interconnected, and that improvements at earlier stages can lead to improvements at later ones. Read the entire page →
From page 34... ... 34 TO RECRUIT AND ADVANCE WOMEN STUDENTS AND FACULTY similar project, is also directed at educators at the K-12 level, in this case to enhance mathematics courses (US DOE, 2001) Read the entire page →
From page 35... ... RECRUITING WOMEN STUDENTS 35 • including respect for diversity in science teacher training; • offering a resource to elementary and secondary schools, which want to ensure that course and ancillary materials present a positive picture of women in S&E; and • having female college students and faculty interact with secondary students by means of visits, guest lectures, and judging science fairs, among other things. Alumni can also be an outreach resource. Read the entire page →
From page 36... ... 36 TO RECRUIT AND ADVANCE WOMEN STUDENTS AND FACULTY • outreach to high school students who do not go immediately into college programs. Revising the Admissions Process One way to recruit a greater number of female undergraduates is to consider a broader range of factors in deciding on admissions and to reexamine the gatekeeper requirements. Read the entire page →
From page 37... ... RECRUITING WOMEN STUDENTS 37 disadvantaged in math and science. The program sponsored a mentor for them in their own schools. Read the entire page →
From page 38... ... 38 TO RECRUIT AND ADVANCE WOMEN STUDENTS AND FACULTY tion projects, and interaction with students. These events are designed to pique the interest of students who are considering attending the institution. Read the entire page →
From page 39... ... RECRUITING WOMEN STUDENTS 39 Developing Bridging Programs Bridging programs are held in the summer for students who have just graduated from high school and are preparing to enter a university or college in the fall. Such programs are intended to acclimatize students to the college level and to offer then a chance to brush up on certain subjects -- all to ease the transition from high school to college. Read the entire page →
From page 40... ... 40 TO RECRUIT AND ADVANCE WOMEN STUDENTS AND FACULTY than for undergraduate students. Rather, the focus is on combating any negative views or experiences of undergraduates toward further study in science and engineering. Read the entire page →
From page 41... ... RECRUITING WOMEN STUDENTS 41 refreshments at a lunchtime seminar series or journal club, or support a group that simply gets together to network and mentor one another. Finally, faculty support is important. Read the entire page →
From page 42... ... 42 TO RECRUIT AND ADVANCE WOMEN STUDENTS AND FACULTY Enhancing and Improving Undergraduate S&E Programs Just as improvements in secondary school make it easier to recruit prospective undergraduates, improvements in women's experiences in undergraduate school make it easier for universities to recruit graduates. Strategies might entail establishing programs to give female S&E students greater access to research projects, which can better acclimate them to the kind of work expected in graduate school. Read the entire page →
From page 43... ... RECRUITING WOMEN STUDENTS 43 at enculturating graduate students supplement the general orientation [held by the institution] with a departmentally sponsored orientation. Read the entire page →
From page 44... ... 44 TO RECRUIT AND ADVANCE WOMEN STUDENTS AND FACULTY 5Because postdocs were not a focus of this guide, readers are encouraged to refer to other reports that have addressed the postdoctoral experience in depth. See, for example, COSEPUP (2000) Read the entire page →
From page 45... ... RECRUITING WOMEN STUDENTS 45 students need to engage in networking and plug into their S&E discipline. Moreover, having a well-known mentor or adviser is likely to improve dramatically the chances that a recent Ph.D. Read the entire page →
From page 46... ... 46 TO RECRUIT AND ADVANCE WOMEN STUDENTS AND FACULTY ried postdocs (who, in all, constitute almost 70 percent of our sample) have spouses who are gainfully employed. Read the entire page →
From page 47... ... RECRUITING WOMEN STUDENTS 47 BOX 2-5 Summary of Strategies for Recruiting Women Undergraduate, Graduate, and Postdoctoral Students What faculty can do: • Advise and mentor prospective and current female undergraduate and graduate students and postdocs. • Conduct outreach to K-12 institutions to help prepare women for college and to combat negative attitudes about the place of women in science and engineering. Read the entire page →

From page 14...

... 14 2 Recruiting Women Students Recruitment of students into science and engineering (S&E) pro-grams is an interactive process, reflecting the intersection of auniversity's efforts to enroll students and students' desires to attend a particular institution.