2025 Collaborative Network for Engineering & Computing Diversity (CoNECD)

The persistent mental health crisis in higher education has resulted in advancement in research endeavors in the area. However, while it is known that women and other marginalized groups have a higher incidence of mental health challenges, little is known about the engineering-specific experiences that lead to such outcomes. This paper starts exploring the mental health challenges of engineering students at the intersection with gender. Our research question is: What are the experiences that jeopardize the mental health of undergraduate women in engineering? This work uses data from 16 interviews with undergraduate women in engineering. We use thematic analysis to come up with general themes on their gendered experiences and how they are linked to their mental health challenges. Experiences of being outnumbered by males in academic spaces were the main sources of anxiety and self-doubt that participants reported leading to poor mental health. This was followed by experiences of sexism in formal and informal interactions in engineering spaces. We also found that some participants discredited their experiences due to their self-imposed gendered views. We provide a more thorough description of these experiences and provide potential paths to start addressing these challenges and enhance the mental health of women undergraduate students in engineering.