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facing stereotypical kinds of problems when they have more exposure to women in the
field and in the Rowan program itself.
FEMALE STUDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS OF PROBLEMS FOR WOMEN IN SEM
Next we turn to female students’ perceptions of problems for women in science,
engineering and math, and the factors influencing their perceptions.
Background Factors and Female Perceptions of Problems for Women in SEM
Exposure to Female Role Models
First it should be noted that very few (only 5) of the female students had mothers
who had not been employed while they were in elementary or high school. This is itself is
an interesting finding, as nearly a third of the male students had mothers who were not
employed while they were in school. However, with so few whose mothers had not been
employed, it is difficult to reach any conclusions about the differences between them and
students whose mothers were employed.
Of the female students who had sisters, about a fourth of them were in the fields
of science, engineering or math. Here there were very clear differences between those
with sisters in SEM and those who did not have sisters in SEM: those with sisters in SEM
were much more likely to perceive as problematic all three areas: societal attitudes
toward women in science, engineering or math; the conflict between feminine qualities
and SEM; and the conflict between family and career responsibilities (Table IIG-8). The
sister’s role model apparently sensitized the female students to possible problems for
women in these fields. Nevertheless, these students had chosen to major in engineering,
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