Women Engineers a ‘Flight Risk’ from the Field

Nearly 40 percent of women with engineering degrees either leave the field after five years or never work in it at all. The research was presented at the American Psychological Association’s annual conference.  “Among women who left less than five years ago, two-thirds said they pursued better opportunities in other fields while a third stayed home with children because companies didn’t accommodate work-life concerns,” said presenter Nadya Fouad, Ph.D., from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. “Among those who went to other industries, 54 percent became executives, 22 percent were in management and 24 percent worked as staff members.” Even the women who stay in the profession say they have been challenged by workplace climate and the ‘good old boys’ mentality.

 

http://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2014/08/women-engineering.aspx