Women In Engineering: Disparities Remain Despite Progress

What career advice do you have for women currently working in engineering? What about students who are considering the profession?
Mary Ellen Randall: Stay with it! Women who work in this industry tend to do very well. Build a strong network of women and men who will help and support you. Relationships will add to your success. Be sure to find good mentors and utilize them to help you understand corporate culture, keep you up to date on what is happening in the workplace, as a sounding board for putting ideas into practice, and to make introductions for you and open doors.

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Kate Colborn: For professionals: network, network, network. For those willing to invest the time and energy, there are lots of avenues and many rewards. Being active in SWE or another professional society, or in company networking and diversity groups, gives women a chance to practice and demonstrate leadership skills. It can also make women techies visible to management in ways that their day-to-day jobs don't. From my observations of the successful women engineers I interview, involvement beyond the narrow requirements of their jobs is the most consistent similarity. Students should do everything they can to land real-world internships. Internships are essential on a resume and are also a great way to find out if engineering is the right career choice. Students can connect with campus SWE chapters or take advantage of "tech camp" programs and job-shadow days to get a sense of what the engineering profession involves. Or check out MentorNet.org to find an online connection with a working female engineer.

C. Diane Matt: Many books and Web sites are available for girls interested in engineering careers or just interested in learning more about engineering. The National Engineers Week (NEW) Girl Day website has a great list: www.eweek.org/site/News/Eweek/girlsday_resources.shtml. I would also encourage interested students to find a mentor, either a woman or a man, who knows about engineering, who can answer their questions, and who they can talk to about their interests and concerns.

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