In the engineering field, it’s widely known that there are far fewer women than men. I’m not an actual engineer yet, and I’ve already experienced some of the things that women have to go through on a daily basis. These are just a few circumstances I have noticed being in the engineering world.
#1: Being one of two girls in a class of thirty
The first day of classes you’re still trying to be a little optimistic. You think to yourself, “hmm.. I wonder if we’ll make it to 5 girls for this class” only to walk in and find yourself surrounded by men and one other girl you don’t know too well. The upside: you do make some pretty good girlfriends. The few of us have to stick together!
#2: You feel pressure to not look nice
This could just be a me thing, but I’m always hesitant to dress up for classes. And when I say dress up I mean if I want to break out a cute dress and some wedges, I feel judged. There’s this stereotype that a woman isn’t smart if she looks good or wears lots of makeup and does her hair, and I feel that a lot being an engineer. You just have to remember to rock whatever you want; if you want to wear sweats and no makeup, bum it out! If you want to wear a skirt and a red lip, go for it! Show the haters that you’re smart AND you look good doing your thing.
#3: People think you aren’t capable of doing minor tasks
In a lot of my classes, my professors have assigned problems that you need to work on with a partner and turn in at the end of the class. Group work is generally hard because people will always have different opinions and not agree, but on more than one occasion, the boys have taken the responsibility of doing everything, even if what they’re doing is wrong. You try to help and just get brushed off and ignored. Now, I’m not saying in any way that everyone does this, but I have personally experienced it many times myself. You have to be confident in yourself, and not let people’s actions discourage you from helping and having an input.
#4: “Oh really? You’re an engineer?”
This is one of the most frequent phrases I, as a woman in engineering, have heard. “I didn’t know you were that smart,” I hear a lot too. You’re never expected to be smart or really know what you’re talking about for that matter.
While there are many women who actually are engineers, and the numbers have been increasing over the years, the majority of people in the field are men. There are so many smart girls out there who may be nervous to work in a male-dominated field. Just remember that you are just as smart and just as qualified as every male you are working next to. Go out there and show them what you got!