The Implications of Representation of Gender Beyond Higher Education

Higher education establishments for years have been actively working to prevent gender
bias and any gender gap in their admissions and student body populations. Their strategies
have evolved and enough attention has come to the issue to seemingly lead a charge towards
equal representation of genders in universities and beyond. But what if these unequal
representations of gender in higher education were not necessarily caused by the institutions
themselves, but how the unequal representation of gender in the workforce that is broadcasted
to the students applying to these institutions? Based off the research and evidence I have
gathered, I believe that the unequal representation of gender in STEM programs in colleges is
related to the unequal representation of gender in the workforce and beyond the classroom.

The data I have used to come to this conclusion is from several academic journals and
data I collected with a group of peers seeking to learn more about the issue. In an academic
journal discussing the Doctoral Dissertation supervision committee makeup of mathematics
doctorates a study found that the supervision committees were often dominated by males, the
study cited dissertations reviewed over a 40 year time span and the makeup of the their
supervision committees over that time (Vallejo 218). The study also noted that there was no
detectable gender bias cited in the acquisition of Doctorates in Mathematics, both genders were
performing similarly (Vallejo 218). This meant that something was happening after the females
were getting their doctorates where they were not being invited to serve on supervision
committees even though the only requirement to serve on one is to hold a Doctorate that they
were receiving at the same rates as men (Vallejo 212). Evidence from another article would also
go on to show that while the admissions process in STEM fields is usually quite equal regarding
gender representation, the representation and fair treatment of women in the field and faculty
that teach the field is also increasingly equal and there are growing senses of satisfaction of the
workplace from both genders (Darrah 15). This other study addressed fair treatment of women
in STEM field faculty and even found that they more often than not felt equally treated to their
male counterparts, even though they were historically underrepresented in the departments
(Darrah 16).

In the data that I obtained with a group of peers through a survey of the University of
North Carolina at Charlottes students similar conclusions to the ones made in the earlier cited
studies were found. The survey was distributed over a 3 day time span to the maximum number
of 100 participants and inquired how students had experienced or seen gender bias from their
backgrounds, their present environment, and whether they expect it going forward. One of our
questions asked if students saw any bias in the admissions process for getting into higher
education institutions and concluded that females were getting into universities at the same rate
or even a higher rate than males.
(Pearson)

This data lead our group to believe that the problem with gender representation does not lie in
the admissions process. Another question we asked inferred on if students felt that there choice
career field generally has an unequal representation of gender. This finding resulted in our
group concluding that just as the articles that I previously cited, there is an issue lying in how
genders are represented beyond the number of men and women applying to college.
(Pearson)
 The data I have collected on the topic of gender bias in higher education and specifically
in STEM fields and beyond the classroom, does support that there is indeed an issue with the
representation of genders in the workforce and beyond. While work has been done tirelessly
over the past century to bring equal rights to women, they are now finding themselves in
universities and higher education institutions at rates similar or even higher than men as some
of the evidence shows (Pearson). While they are getting equal access to the resources
necessary to excel in a career in their desired field or become certified to join the faculty who
teaches it, for some reason there is a gap in their representation beyond their diploma
acquirement. The best evidence for that traces back to the doctoral dissertation supervision
study and the obvious bias towards men dominating supervision of doctoral dissertation even
though there was not a significant bias in the representation of men giving dissertations (Vallejo
218). Evidence from the second study also supports the unequal representation of gender
beyond the classroom and in the workforce being an issue. The studys conclusions of women
being treated equally in the workforce found positive results that supported fair treatment after
changes had been made to support and equal work environment and no longer a male
dominated one (Darrah 16). Unfortunately while these changes helped improve conditions for
women already in the field, the changes weren't necessarily leading to an increase of women in
the program yet, but the results look promising for the future (Darrah 16). Since our primary data
collection also supports the claim, it would seem safe to conclude that there is an issue with the
representation of women past just college admissions and that solving it would help close the
gender gap, particularly in STEM fields where initiatives have been taken to start solving the
problem as well (Darrah 16). A future with these initiatives continued should see the gender gap
close in regards of representation of men and women in the workforce and possibly even see
changes in how the gender bias is perceived going forward.

References:

Vallejo, Mnica, et al. "Gender Bias in Higher Education: Spanish Doctoral Dissertations in
Mathematics Education." Journal of Hispanic Higher Education, vol. 15, no. 3, 01 July 2016, pp.
205-220. EBSCOhost, librarylink.uncc.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?
direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ1102993&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

Darrah, Marjorie, et al. "Salary, Space, and Satisfaction: An Examination of Gender Differences
in the Sciences." Research in Higher Education Journal, vol. 23, 01 Apr. 2014.
EBSCOhost, librarylink.uncc.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?
direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ1064109&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

Pearson, Riley, Gender Bias Evaluation, Survey,

4/6/17,https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/FPSCXD3