Women in engineering: MIA?
I’ve noted before that there are precious few women engineers in most American companies. This, despite women being in a majority on campuses, as they beat out their male counterparts in the increasingly competitive college admissions process. Indeed, women are substantially represented on the lower rungs of the career ladder in technical and engineering departments.
But the story changes as they reach their mid- to late-thirties. Over half of all women voluntarily quit their jobs. What gives?
Monday’s Financial Times has a detailed analysis by Columbia University economist Sylvia Ann Hewlett who identifies five factors forcing out female engineers:
1. Many are turned off by male behavior. A reported 63% of women in science and engineering experience sexual harassment.
2. Women feel isolated.
3. Many lack role models and no-one to mentor their career progression.
4. They prefer not to embrace risk-taking career gambles.
5. Finally, they are caught between a rock and hard place when it comes to maintaining 70+ hour work weeks AND managing child and elder care.
Hewlett offers some sound advice for companies who wish to maintain their pool of qualified female engineers and scientists past their 30’s. Failure to do so, she points out, is a national issue:
“In the US alone, reducing female attrition by one-quarter would add 220,000 qualified people to the science, engineering and technology labour pool.”
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I have worked as a non-degreed engineer. One more aspect of the job was international travel. For me it was great as my wife traveled with me.
I did work with one woman engineer on a large hand laid drystone retaining wall. The reason she made it was that she owned her own business.
As you mentioned, most are MIA.
By Jonathan Steele on 06.14.08 6:44 pm
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