Running Head: Women in Mechanical Engineering

Women in Mechanical Engineering

Adrien Kellaway

The University of Texas at El Paso

Running Head: Women in Mechanical Engineering

Abstract
The field of Mechanical Engineering has been and will continue to remain a highly

respected occupation. However, it has not treated everyone with the same respect. For decades,

women have been seen as unintelligent individuals when compared to men because of the

discrimination they face on a day to day basis. For instance, they have been targeted as the ones

less likely to hold a position in engineering because men outnumber women in the field of

engineering. Now that the mindsets of many individuals have changed, women are now being

taken more seriously in the hiring process. This means that women are now being offered more

opportunities to hold a career in any engineering company they desire. Though, there are still

cases of discrimination and inequality being reported.

Running Head: Women in Mechanical Engineering

Women in Mechanical Engineering: A Literature Review of the involvement of women in

Mechanical Engineering

Women have had a large impact in the field of engineering and will continue to do so as

long as they are treated with equality and respect. In many instances, though, they find

themselves in rougher situations because the field of engineering is permeated with men.

Because of this, women are seen as weak-minded individuals when, in fact, they have the same

potential, if not more, than men. There are several reasons to why women are treated this way

and all root to the same issue. The early stages of education.

Women are treated unequally because when they are younger they often receive less help

from teachers and educators than boys do. As a result, women frequently do not enter the

engineering field because they were not able to possess the education that boys had in the

courses such as mathematics and science. Some may question whether or not these predicaments

will change and how they will effect engineering in the future. In order to do so, four key

questions must be answered:

1. Why are women seen as inferior in the field of Mechanical Engineering?

2. How can we get more women involved in Mechanical Engineering?

3. What can women add to the field to improve it?

4. What is the current situation of women in Mechanical Engineering?

Running Head: Women in Mechanical Engineering

Why are women seen as inferior in the field of Mechanical Engineering?

For decades, women have been stereotyped by society (Hill, 2010) because they are seen

as less intelligent than men. This is due to the fact that there are more men involved in STEM,

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, fields than there are women. As a result,

women are seen as incompetent and simpleminded because statistically they are more likely to

participate in non-STEM related fields such as nursing, business, accounting, etc. Although this

is not the case, women will more than likely continue to face these discriminations and

negligence until more women are involved in STEM fields.

Many individuals, commonly men, who tend to believe that women and girls are not as

good as boys and men consciously, tend to still unconsciously believe that the stereotype about

women is true (Hill, 2010). This is probably because individuals who think this see that some

women often have things handed to them, so they do not have to work for any of their

achievements or success. However, this is completely false because engineering is one of the

most professional fields where an individual has to continue to work if they want to see their

career enhance and find new affluences/prosperities.

Another major reason why women are not taken seriously in the field of engineering is

because many quit during and after school (Silbey, 2016). According to a study conducted by

Carroll Seron (UC Irvine), Eric Cech (University of Michigan), Brian Rubineau (McGill) and

Susan Silbey, they found that female students often leave the profession because of the strong

presence of masculinity in the field. Socializing comes difficult to women in engineering because

it is seen as unusual when they only mainly see men in the field. This is a sense of out casting

because it comes across as women being seen as inferior people.

Running Head: Women in Mechanical Engineering

In addition, this issue also brings forth more predicaments that women face on a day to

day basis. For instance, since the field of engineering is so heavily permeated with men, this

causes women to feel cases of self-doubt. Women second guessing themselves is a large problem

that causes them to leave the field. As a result, many women quit the field and this is what makes

large numbers of people to consider women unserious in STEM fields such as engineering. Lack

of confidence is what will cause women to leave the field, not because they are seen as less

intelligent than men.

Not only do men view women as less serious, but it is also the culture of engineering.

According to a research conducted in 2003 by college graduates, they found that some women,

whom they collected personal diaries from, were reporting projects that were not challenging,

isolation from support groups and cases of sexual harassment that ruined their work experiences.

This feeling of neglect and dismissal causes many women to consider leaving engineering. It is

not only women who are peers or colleagues, but also those who are in senior positions. This

issue makes some men think that women who have a much higher position than them in their

career, think that they do not know anything.

In terms of engineering and any STEM field, women should not be over looked, treated

with negligence or discriminated against. Many women move on later in their careers to become

CEOs and world changers with their influences and contributions to the engineering field.

Instead, they should be promoted more often into engineering so they are not outnumbered by

men and to see the talent they possess to change the engineering field in a positive way. The only

way to keep engineering alive for women is to end discrimination against them and to give them

the same amount of respect and trust as men are given.

Running Head: Women in Mechanical Engineering

How can we get more women to be involved in Mechanical Engineering?

Engineering is a very well respected occupation whose rewards come at the expense of

hard work and dedication. Individuals who believe this ideology tend to flourish later in their

career as engineers. With this stated, it is imperative that more girls and women are introduced to

the field of engineering because it will expand the industry immensely. In order to do so,

however, girls need to be exposed to engineering and mathematics at a young age such as

elementary school. For example, young girls who are in elementary and middle school should be

introduced to extracurricular activities and clubs that focus primarily on the principals and

fundamentals engineering has to offer.

With the introduction early on to engineering based courses and activities, young girls

will begin to have an appreciation for the field of engineering and mathematics. They will be

able to solve real world problems and face challenging tasks that will strengthen their learning

capabilities and problem solving skills.

To allow more girls and women into the field of engineering, they must first be treated

with equal respect and intellect. Often, young boys are the center of attention in elementary and

middle schools when it comes to mathematics. As long as young boys and girls are exposed to

science and technology and are equally encouraged to study those disciplines, those with talent

and a genuine interest in those fields will be able to develop that interest (Purcell, 2015).

Correcting the negative mindsets that girls are less intelligent than boys is the primary factor

when advocating women and girls to pursue their passion in engineering, mathematics or

science.
Running Head: Women in Mechanical Engineering

Serving as a mentor can have a large impact on the individual who is being mentored.

Young girls who are often mentored end up staying in the engineering field because their

mentors expose them to new techniques and processes of work. These techniques can be applied

to several different branches of engineering which can diversify their perceptions and, therefore,

lead them to the discipline in which they would like to pursue.

Another way to increase the number of female engineers is to allow them to understand

the techniques and skills they acquire from engineering can be used in many other professions

that are non-engineering related. Many individuals who do so frequently find themselves in

better situations when they join another profession. This is because they are able to have better

perception of how they attend to different situations that call for more attention to detail. In

addition, women who end up leaving the field for another tend to make a high impact at their

new profession. This is because they are, again, able to use their developed skills to enhance the

environment they work in by contributing to newly found innovations or solutions.

As women become more prevalent in engineering and science careers, the realm

of opportunities for younger girls will begin to unravel. Having more women present in

the engineering field will allow for more ways of thinking differently so problems can be

approached in a possibly more effective and ideal manner. In addition, this will lead to

more female tech leaders which will grab the attention of younger women so they do not

experience cases of self-doubt. Instead, they will see the industry of engineering as a

platform of prosperity and achievement. Thus, to get more women to be involved in

engineering, individuals need to continue to inspire those around them so women pursue

their true passion.

Running Head: Women in Mechanical Engineering

What can women add to the field to improve it?

Many innovations and solutions appear frequently in the field of engineering, but what

people fail to realize is how they come about. Often, what is shown to the public is the

innovation or the solution itself when what should be shown is how these came about. Women

aid with these innovations whether engineering companies like to admit it or not. They are the

ones who are able to use their mindsets, which are different than mens, to allow for a new

perception on how to solve certain problems troubling a community or group.

To further explain this argument, women who come to engineering from another field,

say nursing, are able to use their experiences from their previous career to supplement the ideas

that are currently being implanted into solving a large issue a company may be facing. It is very

important to keep recruiting women from other fields because they, too, have the potential to

create and solve new solutions to pre-existing problems.

Women can also improve the field itself by simply recruiting other women as well. By

doing so they will make the culture of engineering more diverse and less discriminatory,

allowing for a balance between men and women engineers. Ultimately, this will cause the field

of engineering to see an increase in the number of employees who work for companies as

engineers and even CEOs. Thus, creating gender-neutral departments where male and female

students and staff can thrive equally in a balanced, intellectually stimulating environment, moves

like this one can place a greater emphasis on the role of creativity and the opportunity for

students to engage in the full - inception, design, and build - process to foster and encourage their

creativity through ingenuity and application of scientific principles through invention during

group projects throughout their degree. (Women in Engineering: How universities can step in to

help provide much-needed skilled engineers, 2016).

Running Head: Women in Mechanical Engineering

Engineering a future: Why a new diploma is a hit with the girls [Image]. (n.d.). Retrieved from

http://www.independent.co.uk/student/student-life/Studies/women-in-engineering-how-

universities-can-step-in-to-help-provide-much-needed-skilled-engineers-

a7067231.html#gallery

This image shows the learning environment at a university where several women are

participating in an engineering course. This image also displays the equality between in

an engineering environment because the instructor is not discriminating against his

female students.

Lastly, women can enhance the field of engineering in many ways. However, they must

first be allowed to do so in order to successfully make an impact in the field. Once women are

taken more seriously and treated with equal judgement, then the world will see that women are

just as likely as men to contribute astronomical improvements to any discipline in engineering.

Running Head: Women in Mechanical Engineering

What is the current situation of women in Mechanical Engineering?

In todays world, women are becoming more involved in engineering courses and

companies as a whole. As companies begin to become more inclusive, more women are finding

an abundance in the opportunities they are relishing in. In fact, today women are earning as many

credits as men are in mathematics and science courses.

Although more women are being promoted into the field, they are still vastly

outnumbered by men. However, discrimination has fallen by a large factor due to more respect

being shown to women by companies and leaders. As time continues to pass, this social barrier

of discrimination and reluctance will slowly, but surely, being to die down.

Percentage (%) of Degrees Earned by Women in Postsecondary Institutions [Image]. (2016,

December 9). Retrieved from http://www.catalyst.org/knowledge/women-science-

technology-engineering-and-mathematics-stem

This is an image of a chart depicting the number of women who earn Bachelors degrees
Running Head: Women in Mechanical Engineering

in certain STEM fields. As it shows, the engineering row has the lowest overall

percentage.

Fortunately, women today still make large impacts in todays society. For instance,

Microsofts Peggy Johnson. She is the Executive Vice President of Business Development at

Microsoft. She and her team were the reason the companys $26 billion transaction of LinkedIn

was established. This business allows for undergraduate and graduate students to keep in touch

with companies who are looking to give internships and career opportunities to those who are

interested in working for an engineering company that they choose. In addition, she also aided in

the construction of an artificial intelligence center in Montreal.

On the other hand, there are still cases in which women continue to be prejudiced against.

Many women are still often overlooked when they are applying for a job even though they may

have the same qualifications and qualities as men possess. This will more than likely occur at a

company whose majority of employees is men.

With this stated, the field of engineering today still needs more women engineers because

of how demanding the field is towards an increase in the workforce. Generally, in order to have

an increase in the number of women, companies and universities need to enhance the curriculum

and devote women to pursue their passion in engineering by not letting discrimination stand in

their way. Until the stereotypes are gone, and technical women experience the same conditions

as their male classmates, those of us who teach engineering and computing can take individual

action in the classroom. (Crawford, 2012).

Running Head: Women in Mechanical Engineering

Lastly, women in todays engineering culture are starting to become more abundant.

Companies are starting to offer them positions unlike past times where they were not even

considered. Thus, from now on, individuals will begin to see a spike in women engineers.

Survey

1. Why are women seen as inferior in the field of Mechanical Engineering?

With this survey, six people were asked the question above and their responses are as

follows:

A. Engineering is advertised differently to men than to women, so men are exposed

to it more often than women along with cultural roles that say women should not

participate in science and math fields

a.) This response is true in some cases. Although most advertisements are

tailored to men, there are still many advertisements that focus on

recruiting more women into engineering.

B. Women in society are never exposed to engineering in their early life (ages 5-18)

so in return they never learn anything about it so they are never interested

b.) This response is true because at younger ages, teachers tend to choose

on boys more than girls in class.

C. Women are more sociable when it comes to picking a career. For instance, nurses

and doctors meet new patients every day and are able to interact with them. While

engineering is more of a solo career where you solve problems individually

c.) This response is stereotypical because it says that women have more

social skills than men. While this is the case sometimes, many of the
Running Head: Women in Mechanical Engineering

times the reason why women dont enter the field is just because they

are discouraged by society.

D. Engineering has been labeled as a mans job in society, so women have become

more discouraged to join the field.

d.) This response is true because most of society views engineering as a

mans work when they are asked about what kind of work is done.

E. Engineering, math and science courses are usually associated with men because

men tend to have more background in those fields. Also, stereotypes and gender

roles play a big part because they are what discourage women in joining.

e.) This response is true because more boys and men are exposed to

engineering because, culturally, men are more likely to be exposed to

science and math courses.

F. Culturally speaking, it doesnt seem right to have women working in technical

fields that men primarily occupy, so less women participate in those fields.

f.) This response is based on stereotype because engineering should not

be labeled as a mans job because women have the same potential as

any man.

Conclusion

Overall, women have added many contributions to the field of Mechanical Engineering

and will continue to with their intellect and success. The inclusion of women into more

engineering disciplines will increase the amount of women and will, therefore, allow for more

equality throughout the aspect of it. As long as the engineering culture continues to view women

as primary aspects in success and prosperity, women will persist in playing a key role in any
Running Head: Women in Mechanical Engineering

field of engineering. By allowing more women into engineering, companies will see a drastic

increase in the workforce and the amount of work that can be fulfilled in a timely manner.
Running Head: Women in Mechanical Engineering

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