Board 276: Exploring the Impact of Program Name Change on Gender Diversity in STEM
- Conference
- Location
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Portland, Oregon
- Publication Date
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June 23, 2024
- Start Date
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June 23, 2024
- End Date
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June 26, 2024
- Conference Session
- Tagged Topic
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NSF Grantees Poster Session
- Page Count
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7
- DOI
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10.18260/1-2--46850
- Permanent URL
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https://peer.asee.org/46850
- Download Count
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109
Paper Authors
Faiza Zafar Rice University
Dr. Faiza Zafar is the Assistant Director for Equitable Research, Evaluation, and Grant Development at the Rice Office of STEM Engagement (R-STEM). She has her Ph.D. in Educational Leadership with an emphasis on Math Education. She earned her B.S. in Chemistry and M.Ed. from the University of St. Thomas, Houston, TX.
Carolyn Nichol Rice University
Dr. Carolyn Nichol is a Faculty Fellow in Chemistry and the Director of the Rice Office of STEM Engagement (R-STEM). R-STEM provides teacher professional development to elementary and secondary teachers in science and math content and pedagogy, while also
Abstract
Title: Exploring the Impact of Program Name Change on Gender Diversity in STEM
Gender disparities in STEM remain a pressing concern, especially in engineering, where women receive only 20% of undergraduate degrees. This concise research paper delves into the potential influence of altering the name of an undergraduate research program on attracting female applicants. Specifically, we examine how changing the program's name from "Program 1" to "Program 2" affects the gender balance among applicants, with the other program components remaining the same. Our research reveals a notable shift in the applicant pool following the program's name change. Initially, we had fewer female applicants in “Program 1” than male students. However, following the transition to “Program 2," the number of female applicants increased, equaling almost the number of male applicants. To assess the statistical significance of the observed difference, we conducted the two-sample proportion test, which resulted in a p-value of 0.233, yielding insufficient evidence of a significant difference in the proportions of female applicants between the two programs. However, an intriguing finding emerged when we focused exclusively on the "Program 1" applicants. We expect both male and female applicants to be 50% each. However, the proportion of female applicants in this group did not align with the expected 50/50 gender distribution and yielded a p-value of 0.042, suggesting that female applicants in the "Program 1" applicant pool were significantly lower than 50%. While the overall comparison between the two program names did not yield statistical significance, a deeper analysis within "Program 1" uncovered a significant difference. These findings underscore the importance of program nomenclature as a factor in promoting gender diversity in STEM education and creating a more inclusive environment for underrepresented groups in the field.
Zafar, F., & Nichol, C. (2024, June), Board 276: Exploring the Impact of Program Name Change on Gender Diversity in STEM Paper presented at 2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Portland, Oregon. 10.18260/1-2--46850
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