Attitude About Engineering Survey, Fall 1995 And 1996: A Study Of Confidence By Gender

One of the primary goals of the North Carolina State University College of Engineering (COE) is to enroll the best undergraduate students possible. One factor hampering the achievement of this goal is the lack of interest of many female high school students in the traditionally male-dominated field of engineering. With no special recruiting activities aimed at informing young women about the field of engineering and recruiting them to our campus, the results are not surprising: even though women represent forty percent of the undergraduate enrollment at the University, they represent just under twenty percent in the COE. In order to recruit and enroll the best students, the college must understand why women are generally not inclined towards engineering and, where this disinclination is a result of misperceptions or lack of understanding, provide correct information upon which a rational decision can be made. Moreover, the COE must strive to create an atmosphere that is supportive of the women who do choose to enroll.