2026 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

By the year 2030, [State]’s engineering industry is expected to grow 20% [1], creating over 4,500 jobs annually [2]. Despite best efforts, [State] struggles to produce engineering graduates, with the largest engineering school only creating 1,050 graduates in 2025 [3], of which women represent less than 25% of undergraduates [4]. To address this ongoing challenge, this study examined what makes engineering feel possible, or not, for high school girls. Using Carlone's Model of Science Identity [5], which has been previously modified and used by Patrick when examining engineering student identity [6], we examine what misconceptions and stereotypes block students from developing their interest in engineering careers. This study builds on the knowledge of how schools present engineering to their students as a possible career path, and the influence that has on engineering enrollment and graduates.

The Women in Engineering program advertised to STEM High school teachers in [State] to recruit female high school students to participate in focus groups or interviews. Students were interviewed about what they think engineering is, whether they have considered it as a career, and what support or barriers they notice in their schools and communities. We analyzed the focus group conversations using thematic analysis. We developed and refined codes to identify recurring patterns in students’ descriptions of their experiences and beliefs about engineering. Coded elements were organized based on Carlone’s Science Identity Scale, providing details into how students perceive what it means to be an engineer, how their gender influences their competency in engineering, and how schools affect opportunities and interest in engineering.

Barriers to all three aspects of the identity model were seen in the focus groups. For example, many of the surveyed females perceived that engineering was a labor-intensive physical occupation, impacting their belief in their ability to perform. Students referenced computing as a “nerdy” discipline that they did not want to affiliate with, diminishing their interest in the field as some students distanced themselves from that identity. Addressing these misconceptions, and other results from the survey, can inform how Women in Engineering programs present engineering as a career that enhances students’ sense of competence, performance, and recognition within the field.