5 Myths About Women in Engineering – Busted

Guest post: Syed Osama

Why do men still outnumber women in engineering degrees and professions? If you think the disparity can be blamed on any of the reasons below – get ready to think again!

Myth #1. Men are better at science than women.

Science is one of the fundamental blocks of engineering. To be a successful engineer, one has to have a strong grasp of many scientific concepts. And there’s a pervasive myth that men are naturally better at science than women. That is not the case. While it’s true that men continue to dominate certain areas of science, there are hundreds of prominent examples – both past and present – of outstanding female scientists. Contemporary examples include particle physicist Fabiola Gianotti, neuroscientist Aditi Shankardass, inventor and space scientist Rachel Zimmerman, biochemist and Antarctic researcher Alison Murray – and many, many more.

Myth #2. Women cannot get good enough grades.

If you believe this one, you really must be living in a past era! In fact, recent years have seen concern in countries such as the US and UK about a gender gap in the opposite direction – with female students improving their academic performance and higher education participation at a faster rate than males. In the UK, for instance, statistics released earlier in 2016 showed that women outnumber men in two-thirds of degree subjects, and that among those from poorer backgrounds, women were 50% more likely to attend university than their male peers.

Myth #3. Women are good at soft skills, not technical ones.

This is one of the hardest myths to bust. It’s still widely believed that women are better at ‘soft skills’, while men excel at the technical stuff. But talents are not gender-bound – although it’s likely that prevalent cultural norms and stereotypes influence the types of work both men and women choose to pursue. While we’re on the subject, let me just point out that it’s not actually a choice between soft skills and technical skills – engineers need both! You can’t be a successful engineer without being good at communication, team work, adaptability, flexibility and creativity.

Myth #4. There’s no money for women in engineering.

The gender pay gap cannot be brushed under the carpet. It exists in all industries (even those where women are the majority), although the extent varies. The good news is that the pay gap in STEM careers is often comparatively lower. According to PayScale research published last year, the pay gap is 1.7% in architecture and engineering, and 3% in computer and mathematical jobs. This compares to 4% in business and financial operations, 4.5% in sales, almost 6% in production, 7.6% in installation, maintenance and repair, and more than 9% in farming, fishing and forestry. Still lots of room for improvement, but it seems women in engineering actually get a more equal pay deal than those in most other sectors.

Myth #5. Women can’t reach top positions in engineering.

In fact, many women have climbed the corporate ladder to assume some important technical positions in leading firms. Marissa Mayer, who has both a bachelor’s and master’s degree specializing in artificial intelligence, rose through the ranks at Google, and has been CEO of Yahoo! since 2012. Ginni Rometty, who studied computer science and electrical engineering, has been CEO of IBM since 2012. Mary Barra, another electrical engineering graduate, held a number of senior positions at General Motors before becoming CEO in 2014. So while there are still more men than women at the top, there are also many prominent examples showing that women in engineering can reach the very highest positions.

Syed Osama is based in Lahore, Pakistan. He studied electrical engineering and computer science, and is also interested in business and management. He has co-founded a startup and is on the path to co-found a couple more…