2026 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

This is a research-based complete paper. Engineering education in general is widely regarded as a male dominated field. According to the 2023 report by ASEE Engineering & Engineering Technology by Numbers, 75.8% of the bachelor’s degrees were awarded to male student compared to 24.2% awarded to female students in 2022. The same report states that only 20.1% of the tenured/tenure track engineering faculty are female. These statistics underscore the persistent gender imbalance in engineering education and the profession. Because students’ perceptions of gender roles and professional belonging begin to take shape early in their undergraduate experience, examining these perceptions among first-year engineering students is essential.
In Spring 2025, an IRB approved study was conducted among a diverse group of first-year engineering students. The survey was made available to 705 students enrolled in introductory level engineering courses, with 353 responses collected. The data indicates that there are gender disparities related to students’ perceptions of academic confidence, women underrepresentation in engineering, stereotypical views concerning technical competence and teamwork. Preliminary findings suggest that female students reported more awareness of gender related challenges and expressed concerns about belonging and representation within both engineering programs and the broader workforce.
This study plans to expand on these preliminary findings and create a comparative analysis for all students. We will use descriptive statistics to summarize overall trends in responses by gender. We will explore the qualitative differences in how students describe their experiences using thematic analysis. This analysis is expected to reveal some differences between male and female students in areas such as confidence in ability to succeed in classes, feeling comfortable and included in class discussions or teamwork, importance in having role models of same gender, thoughts on gender influence in opportunities and career. These insights can inform targeted interventions that support persistence and help students recognize and address bias in technical and collaborative contexts from the outset of their engineering education. Additionally, by identifying early perceptual gaps, engineering educators can tailor classroom practices to encourage equitable participation. Such efforts may include structured team roles, inclusive language in instruction, and reflective activities that prompt students to examine assumptions about competence and collaboration.