National data shows that despite gains over the past twenty years, females remain underrepresented in the engineering workforce. Education's role in supporting the engineering pipeline cannot be ignored. Middle school teachers who lack integrated science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (iSTEM) efficacy are less likely to engage students,…

Positive mentoring experiences are crucial for retaining and advancing those who hold marginalized identities in STEM, as they foster a greater sense of belonging and self-efficacy that encourage these students to persist in their fields. Marginalized identities in STEM include, but are not limited to, women, BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People…

Higher education has long recognized women's numerous challenges in undergraduate engineering programs. Several factors contribute to this lack of belonging, including a lack of diversity among student populations, microaggressions, prejudices, and traditions still rooted in male customs. An overlooked factor that may help foster a sense of…

Students use different modes of transport to go to college. While many transportation programs exist at different universities and many experts find these programs to have a positive impact, no studies have investigated the impact of such programs on the absenteeism and academic performance of college students. The main purpose of this study is to…

This thesis examines why, despite extensive research, women are underrepresented in engineering courses in many countries, including Ireland. The reasons for this underrepresentation are not well-understood. This study seeks to contribute to the understanding of women's decision-making regarding their studying engineering, through the application…

This quantitative research study examined higher educational institutions, specifically, Land Grant, Carnegie classification of 'Very high research activity', and Predominantly White Institutions in the United States. Furthermore, the evaluation analyzed HEI effectiveness in engineering programs to retain and graduate African American female…

This study assesses the enterprising characteristics of first-year undergraduate Omani female chemical engineering students in Muscat, Oman. Pre and post surveys were conducted with 27 respondents from an entrepreneurship boot camp module mandated by the Oman Ministry of Higher Education. The variables, measured on a 10-point Likert scale,…

A national need exists to effectively engage women and people categorized as minorities in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields and career paths. Given the minimal existence of standards and accreditation boards for engineering design and holistic engineering practice in K-12 contexts, we must better understand how said…

Physics outreach programs provide a critical context for informal experiences that promote the transition from new student to contributing physicist. Prior studies have suggested a positive link between participation in informal physics outreach programs and the development of a student's physics identity. In this study, we adopt a student-focused…

This paper presents a multi-year study on the impact of attending an engineering summer school on girls' confidence that they could become an engineer. While it is relatively easy to recognise and address tangible barriers to entering an engineering profession -- such as a lack of preparedness in terms of a mathematics or physics background --…

The experiences of female students in an engineering living-learning program (LLP) are described in this study using a constructivist theoretical perspective. The study aims to fill gaps in the literature using qualitative methods. Data from 13 semi-structured individual interviews serve as the primary data source. After conducting a metaphorical…

This paper investigates the effectiveness of a National Science Foundation Scholarship in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (NSF S-STEM) program named "Scholarship for Engineering Technology (SET)" at the State University of New York in Canton (SUNY Canton). The authors seek to answer the following question: To what…

Research suggests that, to narrow the gender gap in engineering, we should focus on helping young girls identify with engineering both because gendered attitudes emerge around kindergarten and because identity is more predictive than performance on persistence in the field. This qualitative study sought to understand the impact of collaborative…

Workforce pipelines are essential to sustain a productive workforce in an increasingly competitive, high-tech environment. Advanced automation, sensors, materials and data analytics will increase the need for highly skilled workers in the manufacturing (and manufactured construction) sector. Attracting and developing the next-generation workforce…

African American and Black women are twice as likely to enroll in higher education in comparison to Black men. However, when it comes to engineering degrees awarded in 2015, only 24% of the Black recipients were women. A potential solution may be to introduce engineering to pre-college Black female students through extracurricular program. Being…