Choices and Barriers: Factors influencing women's choice of higher education in science, engineering and technology

Siann, Gerda; Callaghan, Margaret

doi:10.1080/03098770020030524

Cited by 35 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…The relatively small proportion of female respondents is consistent with the numbers of women studying ICT at the universities involved (Department of Education Employment and Work Relations, 2011), and with the literature on the notably low female participation in ICT education at a tertiary level in Western countries (Cory et al, 2006;Craig et al, 2007; S. Lewis et al, 2007;Ogan et al, 2006;Siann & Callaghan, 2001). The majority of the participants had studied full time (74%) and were domestic students (92.7%).…”

Section: Participantsmentioning

confidence: 50%

What Students are Telling us about Why They Left Their ICT Course

Roberts

McGill

Koppi

2011

Innovation in Teaching and Learning in Information and Computer

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Student attrition is an issue of particular concern in the field of ICT because the industry faces staffing shortfalls. The study described in this paper provides further understanding of the causes of attrition from ICT courses by exploring the reasons students give for leaving their ICT courses. An online survey of early leavers from four Australian universities was conducted. The results show that many factors can contribute to the attrition of ICT students, and that for many students it is a combination of issues that leads to their withdrawal. Only a relatively small number of ex-students had experienced serious life events that necessitated their withdrawal. It was much more common for the participants to cite reasons associated with the university environment, the teaching of their ICT course, and their inability to combine their studies with other commitments. Recommendations are made to address issues that could be mitigated by university action.

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Section: Participantsmentioning

confidence: 50%

What Students are Telling us about Why They Left Their ICT Course

Roberts

McGill

Koppi

2011

Innovation in Teaching and Learning in Information and Computer

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show abstract

“…Society has labelled computing as male (Wajcman, 2000) and this has extended to these environments being unattractive to women, whether within organisations or education, creating a culture of individualism that expects long hours of work and values Computer Science Education 321 competition yet devalues female skills of communication (Pearl et al, 2002;Roldan et al, 2004, p. 110). Siann and Callaghan (2001) suggested that the perception of computing as a masculine domain may account for young women making positive choices to avoid the discipline, as opposed to being prevented from embracing it due to barriers. It is hypothesised that females have low expectancy beliefs in computing, and do not weight it as being important to them, so avoid it.…”

Section: Women Computing and Course Choicementioning

confidence: 98%

Happenstance and compromise: a gendered analysis of students' computing degree course selection

Lang

2010

Computer Science Education

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The number of students choosing to study computing at university continues to decline this century, with an even sharper decline in female students. This article presents the results of a series of interviews with university students studying computing courses in Australia that uncovered the influence of happenstance and compromise on course choice. This investigation provides an insight into the contributing factors into the continued downturn of student diversity in computing bachelor degree courses. Many females interviewed made decisions based on happenstance, many males interviewed had chosen computing as a compromise course, and family helped in the decision-making to a large degree in both genders. The major implication from this investigation is the finding that students of both genders appear to be socialised away from this discipline, which is perceived as a support or insurance skill, not a career in itself, in all but the most technical-oriented (usually male) student.

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“…Women are particularly interested in subjects that lead to careers which society does not value monetarily as highly as others: consequently they tend to have lower-paid careers than do men (Siann & Callaghan, 2001;van de Werfhorst et al, 2003), although they also choose medicine and law (high-paid careers) because of human interest rather than high income (Lightbody et al, 1997). A classic chicken-and-egg (rhetorical) question arises here: is it because women dominate certain careers that society fails to value them highly in monetary terms?…”

Section: Perceptions Of He Relevance To Career Income and Employabilitymentioning

confidence: 98%

Influences on Future UK Higher Education Students' Perceptions and Educational Choices across Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences (GEES)

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2009

Journal of Geography in Higher Education

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Choices and Barriers: Factors influencing women's choice of higher education in science, engineering and technology

Cited by 35 publications

References 9 publications

What Students are Telling us about Why They Left Their ICT Course

What Students are Telling us about Why They Left Their ICT Course

Happenstance and compromise: a gendered analysis of students' computing degree course selection

Influences on Future UK Higher Education Students' Perceptions and Educational Choices across Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences (GEES)

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