Below are the first 10 and last 10 pages of uncorrected machine-read text (when available) of this chapter, followed by the top 30 algorithmically extracted key phrases from the chapter as a whole.
Intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text on the opening pages of each chapter.
Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.
Do not use for reproduction, copying, pasting, or reading; exclusively for search engines.
OCR for page 14
2
Recruiting Women Students
R ecruitment of students into science and engineering (S&E) pro-
grams is an interactive process, reflecting the intersection of a
university's efforts to enroll students and students' desires to at-
tend a particular institution. Two assumptions underlie strategies de-
signed to attract women to undergraduate and graduate education in
S&E: first, the group of female S&E college applicants is larger than the
number that actually enroll (i.e., there is a gap between interest and en-
rollment); and, second, following the first assumption, there are obstacles
to recruiting additional women. Both of these assumptions emerged in
the meetings held at the four universities visited. This chapter addresses
the challenges confronting universities as they try to recruit more female
undergraduates and graduates, and it examines the recruitment strate-
gies adopted by the universities visited and other institutions.
CHALLENGES
In 2001 women comprised 48.9 percent of 20- to 24-year-olds and 49.3
percent of 25- to 29-year-olds in the United States (NSF, 2004c). Women
are more likely than men to enroll in postsecondary education immedi-
ately after completing high school. In 2001, 64 percent of women--com-
pared with 60 percent of men--did so (NSB, 2004). Women constitute a
majority of undergraduate students, and many choose to major in S&E
programs.
The two assumptions that underlie strategies designed to attract
14
OCR for 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 inter-
ested in S&E with female undergraduates in S&E. The working hypoth-
esis is that while both groups are likely growing, the ratio of the former to
the latter remains larger.
Undergraduates
Interest in S&E among high school students is clearly rising. Accord-
ing to recent data from the U.S. Department of Education (2004:70):
Since the early 1980s, when states began to increase the number of re-
quired courses to receive a high school diploma, the percentage of high
school graduates completing advanced coursework in science and math-
ematics has increased. In 1982, 35 percent of high school graduates had
completed advanced science coursework (i.e., at least one course classi-
fied as more challenging than general biology); this percentage had in-
creased to 63 percent by 2000. Most of this increase is attributable to
increases in the rates at which graduates completed chemistry I and/or
physics I because the percentage who had completed at least one course
of either chemistry II, physics II, or advanced biology increased only
from 15 to 18 percent between 1982 and 2000.
The percentage of high school graduates who had completed courses
in advanced academic mathematics (i.e., completed at least one course
classified as more challenging than algebra II and geometry I) increased
from 26 percent in 1982 to 45 percent in 2000. Moreover, the percentage
that had completed advanced level II (i.e., precalculus or an introduction
to analysis) more than tripled (from 5 percent to 18 percent). The percent-
age that had completed advanced level III (i.e., a course in calculus)
doubled (from 6 percent to 13 percent).
Female students' interest in science, as reflected in the percentages of
male and female high school students taking math and science classes,
has also increased (Table 2-1).
Women's interest in the lower-level mathematics classes has consis-
tently been higher than that of male students, and has been growing. For
the higher-level mathematics classes, women's participation has clearly
grown, although the percentage of females taking these courses lags a bit
behind the percentage of male students. Likewise, a greater percentage of
women are taking biology and chemistry.
Additional evidence of female high school students' interest in S&E
can be gleaned from the percentage of women taking advanced place-
ment (AP) subject exams in high school. In general, women are more
likely to take AP exams than men: in 2004, 56.2 percent of AP participants
were women (College Board, 2005). In selected fields, it is clear that
women are quite interested in S&E (Table 2-2).
OCR for page 16
16
in
but
credit
d totals
9.7 6.5
Female 77.3 63.7 22.9 10.6 94.1 18.0 63.5 26.2 the
High earne in
in
who
8.2 7.1
Male 73.7 59.8 23.0 11.2 91.4 14.5 57.1 31.7
Included
Courses students
8.9 6.7 of school.
1998 Total 75.1 61.7 23.1 11.0 92.7 16.2 60.4 28.8
Science high
and percentage
entering
the
to
9.1 5.0
Female 72.2 61.6 12.3 18.3 94.5 12.8 58.5 22.2 report prior
only
Mathematics
9.5 3.9
Male 64.3 57.7 11.1 16.3 91.8 10.9 52.9 27.0 courses
data
these
Selected These
9.3 4.5
1994 Total 70.0 61.1 11.7 17.3 93.2 11.9 55.8 24.5 took
figures. who
Taking
students
published reported.
9.4 5.6 4.1 not
Graduates Female 64.2 54.6 12.8 92.3 10.8 50.0 18.0 those
was
count
previously sex
9.8 7.5 9.4 4.4
School 1998 Male 62.1 51.0 14.0 89.4 47.7 25.4 not
from do
whose
High and and
9.6 6.5 4.2
of 1990 Total 63.2 52.9 13.4 90.9 10.1 48.9 21.5 revised
1994, school graduates
been
high are
1990, have
Biology in
Percentage (2003:103).
Sex:
II while
2-1 by separately NSF
Numbers
Geometry Algebra Trigonometry Precalculus Calculus Biology AP/Honors course
Chemistry Physics Engineering shown
TABLE School, Course Mathematics Science NOTES: each not SOURCE:
OCR for page 17
RECRUITING WOMEN STUDENTS 17
TABLE 2-2 Percentage of AP Examinees Who Are
Female, by Subject, 2004
Percentage of Examinees
Subject Who Are Female
Biology 58
Calculus AB 48
Calculus BC 40
Chemistry 46
Computer science A and AB 15
Physics B 35
Physics C 25
Statistics 50
SOURCE: NAE and NRC (2005).
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 en-
rolling in secondary education (US DOE, 2004). This finding should trans-
late into greater numbers of women majoring in S&E as undergraduates.
Evidence for that conclusion can be found in the number of S&E
baccalaureate degrees awarded to women (Figure 2-1). The number of
FIGURE 2-1 Number of baccalaureate degrees awarded, by field and gender,
1966-2001.
SOURCE: NSF (2004c).
OCR for 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).
women receiving baccalaureate degrees in S&E has risen substantially
and is now equal to or above the number of men.
Women and men pursue particular S&E disciplines to different ex-
tents. A greater portion of degrees in biological and agricultural sciences,
psychology, and the social sciences went to women in 2001 (Table 2-3),
whereas most degrees in engineering were awarded to men.
When the evidence of women's interest in S&E is compared with the
intentions of college freshmen to major in S&E, one might expect many
more female S&E majors. However, women's interest in majoring in S&E
has not changed very much. The percentage of freshmen intending to
major in S&E between 1977 and 2002 has risen (Table 2-4):
· For white females, the percentage has risen slightly since 1977,
from about 20 percent to about 24 percent in 2002, but has dropped slightly
from a high in the early 1990s.
· For Asian American females, the percentage has risen from about
30 percent to about 34 percent and, like the data for whites, is lower in
2002 than it was in the 1990s.
· For black females, there has been a noticeable increase from about
21 percent to about 33 percent.
· For Mexican American/Chicana and Puerto Rican American
females, there has been an increase from about 25 percent to about 31
percent.
OCR for 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. Female freshmen, however, are more likely
than male freshmen to intend to major in biological and agricultural sci-
ences along with social and behavioral sciences, regardless of race or
ethnicity.
The proportion of women freshmen intending to major in S&E is
fairly consistent across all S&E disciplines. More men are choosing com-
puter science, whereas fewer men are choosing the physical sciences and
the biological/agricultural sciences (Table 2-5). Women are increasingly
choosing the biological/agricultural sciences, social/behavior sciences,
and engineering over the physical sciences, mathematics/statistics, and
computer sciences.
The combination of these data on high school interest in S&E, enroll-
ment data, degree data, and freshmen interest in S&E suggests that more
women are receiving degrees in S&E because the number of women at-
tending postsecondary institutions--rather than the proportion of colle-
giate women interested in S&E--is rising. In fact, female freshmen are not
much more interested in S&E than they used to be, nor has the distribu-
tion of women's interest in particular disciplines changed much. Women
still prefer the biological sciences over engineering.
Ultimately, it is the student's decision to apply and enroll in a college
program. One can simply portray this decision as a binary choice to pur-
sue an S&E program in college or not. Universities are increasingly chal-
lenged in their recruiting efforts as prospective students see lower ben-
efits or higher costs in pursuing an S&E degree. Some costs, such as
paying for college, affect both male and female students.1 However, other
factors affect male and female students differently.
Two obstacles sometimes encountered in recruiting more women to
undergraduate study in S&E are differences in preparation for such study
and negative attitudes about S&E. As for differences in preparation,
women face more of an uphill battle to succeed in an S&E program--not
because of a difference in aptitude, but because they have to absorb more
information in less time. Both men and women take S&E courses in high
school, but there is a slight but important difference in the kinds of
courses they take. Women are more likely to take mathematics courses
1For example, if S&E degrees take longer to achieve than non-S&E degrees, students
concerned about financing college might be tempted to enroll in non-S&E programs.
OCR for 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
OCR for 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
OCR for page 22
22 TO RECRUIT AND ADVANCE WOMEN STUDENTS AND FACULTY
TABLE 2-4 Continued
Race and Ethnicity/Sex/Field 1977 1981 1984
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.
SOURCE: NSB (2004:Appendix Table 2-6).
OCR for page 23
RECRUITING WOMEN STUDENTS 23
1987 1990 1993 1996 1999 2002
35.1 33.9 33.2 35.5 36.2 34.7
41.9 40.0 38.8 42.0 45.0 40.8
1.9 2.6 2.2 1.4 1.1 1.8
6.8 6.2 7.4 7.5 7.3 6.8
0.8 0.7 0.5 0.7 0.8 1.0
3.2 2.7 3.1 6.3 6.8 5.2
9.7 8.6 9.8 8.4 6.9 7.9
19.5 19.2 15.8 17.7 22.1 18.1
29.4 29.7 28.2 30.7 28.7 30.7
1.0 1.1 1.1 1.2 0.8 1.5
6.6 5.1 6.5 8.7 9.4 9.2
0.3 0.8 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.5
2.2 1.6 1.1 1.7 1.4 0.6
14.9 16.5 14.7 14.3 13.8 16.7
4.4 4.6 4.4 4.4 2.9 2.2
NA NA 38.0 41.3 37.2 35.4
NA NA 40.4 51.4 45.4 42.2
NA NA 1.8 1.6 1.9 2.0
NA NA 8.7 8.6 5.3 6.9
NA NA 0.3 0.4 0.4 0.9
NA NA 2.9 6.9 9.4 4.8
NA NA 9.0 7.9 9.7 10.0
NA NA 17.7 26.0 18.7 17.6
NA NA 35.4 32.2 31.3 31.1
NA NA 2.0 1.1 1.1 1.5
NA NA 9.9 7.8 9.4 8.3
NA NA 0.2 0.4 0.3 0.6
NA NA 1.5 1.8 1.7 0.9
NA NA 17.0 14.9 15.5 16.6
NA NA 4.8 6.2 3.3 3.2
31.5 31.8 31.9 33.6 35.4 32.0
39.7 35.8 35.9 40.1 39.0 36.8
3.6 4.9 2.0 3.0 2.9 2.2
7.2 7.4 9.5 8.1 7.9 5.3
0.8 0.9 0.8 0.6 0.7 0.8
2.6 1.3 1.9 5.5 5.4 4.0
7.2 7.3 8.2 7.7 7.0 8.6
18.3 14.0 13.5 15.2 15.1 15.9
23.4 26.2 26.5 27.8 30.0 27.2
0.9 1.7 1.0 2.2 2.4 1.4
5.6 7.5 6.7 9.3 10.4 8.8
1.2 0.1 0.6 0.4 0.5 0.4
0.7 1.1 1.6 1.2 1.3 0.5
11.3 12.4 12.4 11.4 12.7 13.3
3.7 3.4 4.2 3.3 2.7 2.8
OCR for page 24
24
5.9 2.2 5.7 2.6 3.2
2002 15.0 14.6 18.1 44.0 31.1 45.8 11.5
100.0 100.0
5.4 1.8 5.4 2.3 7.0
1999 15.5 21.9 15.5 39.9 32.0 42.3 11.2
100.0 100.0
(percentage
5.9 1.8 6.2 2.5 5.6
1996 18.4 15.5 16.1 42.4 32.6 40.7 12.6
100.0 100.0
1977-2002
7.5 2.0 8.5 6.9 2.8 4.2
1993 20.4 18.5 42.9 28.2 43.5 14.4
100.0 100.0 sciences.
Years,
7.4 2.4 8.8 5.1 3.4 6.3 ocean
1990 15.6 20.5 45.4 21.0 50.5 13.8
100.0 100.0
and
Selected
7.0 2.4 9.7 4.9 3.8 6.1
1987 14.8 19.7 46.4 21.1 51.0 13.2
100.0 100.0
Field:
atmospheric,
and 6.9 2.5 5.3 5.2
1984 14.8 16.1 14.9 44.8 21.7 15.7 37.3 14.6
100.0 100.0
earth,
Sex
and
by 7.9 2.2 5.9 4.2
1981 15.1 16.9 13.0 44.9 20.1 21.5 33.3 15.0
100.0 100.0
S&E,
in 3.2 5.5 7.3 5.0 6.6 9.9 astronomy,
1977 10.3 20.1 17.5 43.0 28.8 42.4
100.0 100.0
Major
to chemistry,
2-6).
physics, Table
Intending sciences sciences
include
sciences sciences
Freshmen sciences (2004:Appendix
sciences sciences
sciences sciences
2-5 NSB
Physical
Physical Biological/agricultural Mathematics/statistics Computer Social/behavioral Engineering Physical Biological/agricultural Mathematics/statistics Computer Social/behavioral Engineering
TABLE distribution) Sex/Field Men Women NOTE: SOURCE:
OCR for page 37
RECRUITING WOMEN STUDENTS 37
disadvantaged in math and science. The program sponsored a mentor for
them in their own schools. A summer engineering program offered sopho-
more and junior high school women and minorities several weeks of
exposure to university faculty and students. This program has been suc-
cessful; more than 30 percent of attendees have enrolled at the university.
Yet another program begins by bringing sixth-graders to campus in
groups from the same city. By bringing the students back each year, the
university hoped they will form a cohesive group and eventually enroll in
the university's science and engineering program. According to the dean
of engineering, successful programs are those that stress repeated experi-
ences and interaction with inspiring faculty.
The president of one university decided to promote special events to
recruit diverse undergraduate students. In what has become a longtime
special event, several hundred female, African American, and Asian stu-
dents are invited to spend the weekend on campus to meet with current
students and faculty and to visit labs and other areas. The immediate
goal of the university in initiating the program was to increase the female
S&E student population. Such programs may be very useful for highly
qualified applicants who are able to choose among many undergraduate
institutions.
To nurture and sustain initial interest and present more in-depth
views of science and engineering, some institutions have opted for longer
events. These can take the form of a week-long "camp," incorporating
different areas of science or engineering, or multi-week sessions, typically
held during the summer. These events familiarize students with science
and engineering topics. An example of a summer camp from a school (not
visited) was a week-long mathematics camp held twice, in 1999 and 2000,
by the Department of Mathematics at the University of Southern Colo-
rado. Chacon and Soto-Johnson (2003) note that the process of holding the
camp involved, among other steps, identifying the purpose of the camp;
securing funding; determining course curriculum; identifying and plan-
ning ancillary activities; identifying instructors; identifying who would
be invited to participate, how the admissions process would work, and
how prospective invitees would be located; and program evaluation.
In a similar effort, the chair of an engineering institute at one of the
institutions visited brought high school and middle school students, as
well as college freshmen, to the institute for a hands-on, week-long camp
focusing on robotics and featuring LEGOs, motors, computers, and other
devices. The students worked with PowerPoint presentations and a web
site, set up contests, and watched demonstrations.
Most programs of this type center on an on-site visit, meetings with
faculty and graduates of the program, visits to labs that offer demonstra-
OCR for 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 institu-
tion. Such events are also geared toward identifying students who may
not have considered pursuing a degree in science or engineering or who
have never been introduced to the concept of pursuing science and engi-
neering as a career. These programs address the following critical issues:
· Many middle and high school students have never been in a re-
search lab and do not know what goes on in "research."
· An introduction to women faculty drives home the point that
women are experts in technical fields.
· Interaction with current students and degree graduates demon-
strates the different levels of success possible. Younger students can more
easily identify with speakers closer to their age than with senior faculty.
· Giving women undergraduate and graduate students the opportu-
nity to teach younger students or K-12 teachers about their discipline
helps these student feel that their knowledge is useful, which is highly
motivating for them.
These events are most frequently hosted by a department or a col-
lege, because they can offer a range of lab visits and demonstration
projects. The events do not need to be costly, nor do they always require
a significant faculty or administration presence in the organization. One
of the most successful events was hosted by a student organization at
one of the universities visited. The organization recruited all of the speak-
ers and the participants in demonstration projects (e.g., students and
faculty) and undertook outreach to local high schools. The limited finan-
cial outlay was provided by the dean of engineering. Some events even
included parents, offering them parallel programming so that students
and parents could meet separately with university representatives.
On-campus orientations complement outreach efforts: instead of go-
ing to the secondary schools, the secondary students are brought to cam-
pus. Specific strategies have taken a number of forms, including
· science and engineering competitions or contests;
· visits with students and faculty;
· visits to labs or allowing prospective students to use major equip-
ment such as telescopes or a scanning electron microscope;
· career day; and
· "bring your daughter to work day."
The length of strategies has also varied: day visits, weekend visits, or
week-long or longer programs.
OCR for 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 sub-
jects--all to ease the transition from high school to college. Bridging pro-
grams serve two primary functions: orientation and a jump-start on edu-
cation. An example of a related program is a student exchange program
between Princeton University and Smith College (the nation's first
women's college to have an engineering school). Designed for juniors, the
exchange program is designed to help students succeed in graduate school
and in engineering careers (Anonymous, 2005).
Graduate Student Recruitment
Because graduate students are recruited at the departmental level,
faculty advisers and departments play a much bigger role in the environ-
ment surrounding graduate students than surrounding undergraduate
students. Indeed, the institutional setting for graduate students is in real-
ity the department, and many aspects of graduate student training and
life, such as stipends, may vary from department to department. Some
disciplines follow a certain pattern of training and curriculum, in which
an incoming graduate student may undertake a series of rotations through
various faculty labs before choosing one in which to pursue a thesis. The
process of qualifying examinations from the master's to doctoral level, the
thesis proposal defense, and the thesis committee composition require-
ments all may vary from department to department, even within the
same school at a university. Within this setting, those at the highest levels
in the institution must establish an environment supportive of women.
Better academic preparation is less of a concern for graduate students
BOX 2-3
Graduate Student Recruitment Strategies
Have the institution and S&E departments signal the importance of recruit-
ing women.
Enhance science, engineering, and mathematics education at the under-
graduate level.
Develop better methods for identifying prospective students.
Organize on-campus orientations.
Offer financial aid.
OCR for 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. Universities are also competing with employers
at this point. The overall goal for universities is to show female students
that they can be capable scientists and engineers and that they would
benefit from the additional educational experience.
Signaling the Importance of Women
The university as a parent institution can provide some general struc-
ture for graduate students such as uniform health insurance, housing,
child care (if available), and parking. For most other things, graduate
students look to their departments.
General approaches to improving the recruitment and retention of
graduate students are implemented by an institution, but often it is the
tone set by an administration that actually facilitates change. A dean of
engineering who came from a position in industry was supportive and
outspoken about the value of graduate women and minorities in science
and engineering. The "national crisis" in scientific and engineering talent
cannot be resolved, he pointed out, without educating more women and
minorities. He then praised the decision in 2000 by the "Big Ten Plus"
deans to quickly address the "pipeline problem" and to share best prac-
tices. According to the dean, the university's "industrial partners" are
making it clear that they highly value diversity and want to see more
women and minorities among university graduates. "If a company wants
to sell a car to as many people as possible," he said, "they want a design
team that represents all those people." A diverse workforce requires a
diverse student body.
The role of the department chair in setting the tone of the department
is also critical. A department chair can signal support in many ways, as
was demonstrated at some of the institutions visited. The chair sets policy
and procedure within the department and allocates resources to support
various activities. The chair also has influence at various stages of the
graduate program. Because graduate recruiting is conducted primarily at
the department level, a chair can have a significant influence on how
recruiting is conducted. For example, the chair can call for recruiting
materials to be sent to a diverse group of universities and colleges. Like-
wise, the chair can encourage faculty to ask their colleagues at peer insti-
tutions to recommend diverse candidates for graduate study. During the
degree program, the chair can decide what approach and tone will be
adopted by the department when issues arise and provide support to
activities aimed at helping women students. The chair can support and
reinforce institutional policies on sexual harassment, provide funds for
OCR for 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. As thesis advisers and lab direc-
tors, faculty members are central figures in the daily lives of graduate
students. They set the conditions of work in the lab or research group,
determine the funding stream, and supervise students' research. For many
students the research group is also the center of social interaction and
serves as their community. For this reason, faculty members, by setting
the tone for the working environment, have more influence than anyone
else. For faculty with less experience working with women graduate stu-
dents, some issues that arise may not be anticipated. For example, per-
sonal safety issues may be different for women working alone at night in
a lab. One faculty member commented that whereas general safety issues
had been "background noise," as he put it, the issue of personal safety
became a much higher priority when women students joined the lab.
Similarly, safety issues also are a factor in housing arrangements for
women; on-campus housing may be more important for women who
may want to live closer to limit the distance to and from the lab at odd
hours.
A final resource for departments interested in better reaching pro-
spective female graduate students is the department's web site. "Depart-
mental web sites are sometimes designed to emphasize the participation
of women" (Whitten et al., 2003:253), which is an important step because
the site may be the first entrée the student sees at an institution. Accord-
ing to Bozeman and Hughes (2004:243), "A glance at the photographs on
the web site of any large U.S. mathematics department leads to an unmis-
takable conclusion: Almost all of the faces belong to men. Inevitably,
there is a cluster of female faces, but these in all likelihood belong to the
non-tenure-track faculty and staff members. From the vantage point of a
student at a women's college or a minority-serving institution, this rev-
elation is jarring." An additional measure is for departments to specifi-
cally reference the importance of diversity in admissions policies and
practices (Cuny and Aspray, 2001).
Thus institutional signaling can take the form of
· communications from deans and department chairs about the im-
portance of inclusiveness: use of the department's web site to inform
women; departmental publications that promote inclusiveness--that is,
include pictures of female students, faculty, or scientists;
· monitoring student concerns through climate surveys and meet-
ings with students; and
· developing female-friendly or family-friendly policies to support
students on issues such as campus security or child care.
OCR for 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. In general, departments could
encourage graduate students and faculty to work more with undergradu-
ates. Steps taken by departments and institutions to combat any negative
attitudes female students might have about continuing in higher educa-
tion also would be helpful in recruiting women as well as men.
Identifying Prospective Students
Any efforts by faculty to advise undergraduates about the possibili-
ties of going to graduate school and to bring especially talented under-
graduates to the attention of departments would help graduate student
recruitment. Bringing undergraduates together on campus for a confer-
ence hosted by the university, for example, also could be beneficial. In
2000, the Computing Research Association's Committee on the Status of
Women in Computing Research held a workshop on recruiting and re-
taining women graduate students that echoed these points and is rel-
evant to the range of S&E disciplines. The first recommendation of the
workshop was to "broaden the recruitment pool beyond students with
undergraduate CSE [computer science and engineering] majors" (Cuny
and Aspray, 2001:3). "Students without traditional backgrounds can suc-
ceed--and indeed flourish--in CSE graduate programs. Departments
should go beyond the traditional applicant pool to recruit and admit
strong students without undergraduate degrees in CSE. The potential of
such students can be judged on academic records, difficulty of electives,
successful research experiences, leadership roles, involvement in
computing-like activities in their work or volunteer efforts, and intern-
ship experiences" (p. 4).
Other recommendations from the Cuny and Aspray report suggest
broadening the criteria used in admissions. Schools should also encour-
age the reentry of students who have interrupted their education. Schools
would therefore have to think more broadly about the relevance of
broader criteria for admissions such as work experience.
Organizing On-campus Orientations
In a review of enculturation practices at a large public research uni-
versity, Boyle and Boice (1998:88) noted that "the departments that excel
OCR for page 43
RECRUITING WOMEN STUDENTS 43
at enculturating graduate students supplement the general orientation
[held by the institution] with a departmentally sponsored orientation.
These departments realize that it is the departmental culture, not neces-
sarily the university culture, to which their incoming students will need
to adjust." Orientations could be held to introduce undergraduates to
graduate students or faculty and to a department's labs and research
projects. Orientation also could take the form of bridging programs, simi-
lar in purpose to those held between high school and the start of under-
graduate education. Such programs could assess students' skills and pro-
cedures for remedying deficiencies such as reading lists and summer
courses or mentoring (Cuny and Aspray, 2001).
Offering Financial Aid
Research assistantships are very valuable in promoting the careers of
graduate students. Thus departments should ensure that they offer these
positions in similar numbers to male and female candidates, and make
the positions as flexible as possible. As one academic noted, "When gradu-
ate aid comes in the form of teaching assistantships, as it does in my
university, there is far less flexibility for taking time off. That especially
affects women" (Kerber, 2005).
Postdoctoral Recruiting
Postdoctoral recruitment and the recruitment of new, tenure-track
assistant professors involve many of the same issues (see Chapter 4 for
additional discussion). Although institutional policies such as child care
are likely to be important to both postdocs and new junior faculty, the
hiring for these positions is conducted differently.
BOX 2-4
Postdoctoral Recruitment Strategies
Have the institution and S&E departments signal the importance of recruit-
ing women.
Enhance science, engineering, and mathematics education at the graduate
level.
Develop better methods for identifying prospective postdocs.
Establish female- and family-friendly policies and practices.
Increase postdoctoral salaries.
OCR for page 44
44 TO RECRUIT AND ADVANCE WOMEN STUDENTS AND FACULTY
Signaling the Importance of Women
As with graduate students the university as a parent institution can
provide some general structure for postdoctoral students such as uniform
health insurance, housing, child care (if available), and parking. For most
other things, postdoctoral students look to their departments, and espe-
cially their labs.
Approaches to improving the recruitment of postdoctoral students
are implemented by an institution, and the tone set by an administration
can facilitate change. A department chair can signal support in many
ways, by setting policy and procedure within the department and allocat-
ing resources to support various activities.
Faculty support is paramount. Because postdoctoral recruiting is con-
ducted primarily at the individual faculty or laboratory level, the role of
the faculty member is critical. At this stage, faculty are no longer instruc-
tors and advisers but peers and colleagues. How postdoctoral students
are treated informs the perceptions and preferences of all involved, such
as the considerations extended to women graduate students. Faculty
members set the conditions of work, determine the funding source, and
guide postdoctoral research. The research group is the social center and
community for the postdoc.
Another form of institutional signaling is creation of an organiza-
tional mechanism for oversight of departmental practices regarding
postdocs. At a minimum, deans, provosts, and departmental chairs can
remind the faculty involved in postdoctoral searches that one component
of the search is diversity.
Because postdocs tend to be older than graduate students, they are
likely to face the same kinds of challenges faced by junior faculty: two-
body problem in finding jobs, child-bearing, family responsibilities, and
financial issues.5
Enhancing and Improving the Graduate Experience
Just as improvements in undergraduate education facilitate recruit-
ment for graduate school, improving the graduate experience for women
can ease the transition for women from predoctoral status to postdoctoral
status. The process of learning about postdoctoral positions is partly for-
mal (e.g., advertisements in the journal Science) and partly informal. As a
result--and perhaps more so than for junior faculty--women graduate
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), Davis (2005).
OCR for 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. will land a postdoctoral posi-
tion. Finally, women graduate students, as part of the process by which
they earn a Ph.D., also need to obtain the skills that lab directors and other
faculty desire in postdocs. Department chairs and faculty should encour-
age all graduate students to develop good research, management, grant-
writing, organizational, and time management skills, and ensure that
women and men receive such training or mentoring equally.
Identifying Prospective Students
Faculty should advise their graduates about the possibilities and ben-
efits of postdoctoral appointments and bring especially talented gradu-
ates to the attention of departments.
Establishing Female- and Family-Friendly Policies and Practices
By adopting various institutional policies and practices, universities
could make themselves more attractive to prospective postdocs of either
gender. These policies and practices include:
· Establishing parental leave policies and child care. Postdocs should be
eligible for such benefits, which are often given to faculty. A recent survey
of postdocs found that 34 percent were raising children (Davis, 2005).
· Instituting sexual harassment sensitivity programs. During the site vis-
its, many people pointed out that within each discipline certain academic
departments have reputations for being receptive or not receptive to
women. At each institution, the issue of sexual harassment was raised.
Most institutions responded that they have policies against sexual harass-
ment and programs designed to educate employees. To improve the cli-
mate of a department for current faculty and to aid in recruiting women
faculty, some institutions have taken steps to combat sexual harassment.
At some institutions the policies were buttressed by personal meetings
with a dean or other member of the administration.
· Instituting regular studies to determine the equity of salaries and re-
sources.
· Offering housing subsidies and access to medical and dental benefits.
Sigma Xi recently conducted a multi-campus survey of postdocs, and the
preliminary results suggested that housing costs are a particular burden
for many postdocs because their host institutions tend to be concentrated
in pricey areas. More than 46 percent of respondents work in one of the 15
most expensive cities in the United States. It helps that most of the mar-
OCR for 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. On the flip side, at least 28
percent of the married postdocs do not have spouses bringing home a
paycheck. The statistic is worse for international postdocs with spouses,
43 percent of whom do not work outside the home, in some cases because
of visa restrictions. Of the many single-earner households, nearly half (49
percent) spend more than a third of their income on rent (Davis, 2005:7).
Today the costs of health care are quite high. It may not be well
known that postdocs who receive independent funding may not be auto-
matically eligible for health insurance. Postdocs also are seeking greater
access to retirement benefits (Davis, 2005).
Increasing Postdoctoral Salaries
A majority of postdoctoral positions are federally funded, and the
majority of those are funded by the National Institutes of Health (Brainard,
2005). According to Kreeger (2004:178), "The salary levels of the National
Research Service Awards (NRSA) given by the U.S. National Institutes of
Health (NIH) are being used as de facto guidelines by postdocs and their
supporters in university administration in seeking pay rises. . . . Adminis-
trators both inside and outside the United States take note of the NRSA
scales, but these are not official guidelines and have no teeth." One solu-
tion would be to set minimum salary standards at each institution. Uni-
versities could set postdoctoral salaries against peer institutions or con-
sider the NRSA salary level as a minimum threshold. At a minimum,
administrators could survey postdocs at their institutions to determine
whether postdocs in similar positions are paid similarly or could make
salary guidelines more transparent.
OCR for 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 grad-
uate 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.
· Network with faculty at community colleges and other four-year institutions
to broaden the search for prospective recruits.
· Invite female students to participate in research opportunities.
· Participate in bridge programs, campus visits, lectures, and seminars.
· Broaden admission criteria and cast a wider net in recruiting students.
What department chairs can do:
· Create an image of the department as female friendly and feature this im-
age in promotional materials and on the department's web site.
· Communicate with faculty about the importance of diversity in recruiting.
· Support and reinforce a faculty member's commitment to advising and en-
couraging female students and postdocs through service awards and recognition
during tenure and promotion reviews.
· Monitor the allocation of resources to students and survey students'
opinions.
What deans and provosts can do:
· Communicate with department chairs about the importance of diversity in
recruiting.
· Sponsor competitions, contests, career days, bridge programs, campus ori-
entations, and other efforts to bring prospective students to campus.
· Monitor departments' progress in increasing the percentage of female stu-
dents and postdocs.
· Conduct school-wide assessments of status of women.
What presidents can do:
· Publicly state the institution's commitment to diversity and inclusiveness
whenever possible.
· Create an institutional structure, such as a standing committee, to address
diversity issues within the student body. Charge that committee with monitoring
diversity across the institution and with making recommendations to increase
diversity.
· Demonstrate the institution's commitment by meeting with female students
and postdocs and devoting resources to programs that assist them.
Representative terms from entire chapter:
computer sciences
