Gender Stereotypes Impact Collegiate Choices

As a little kid, when my mother or father would ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I remembered saying “scientist”. Usually you would hear a little girl say “princess”, or “ballerina”, but not me. Pink tutus and crowns didn’t interest me much. I loved learning about the human body and animals, which crept my mom out a lot because she’d walk in on her five-year-old reading a book on bodily systems. Science was (and still is) my passion, but I’ve noticed that, compared to men, there aren’t nearly as many women in science fields. Why is this? The answer’s easy; it’s because of gender stereotypes.

Was that too blunt? You can think so if you wish, but the chart that is above this article shows just how much of a gender gap exists in college majors.

What do gender stereotypes have to do with this? Think of it this way… When you see a little boy, do you see him being the next biggest fashion designer? Or maybe a nurse, or an interior designer? Most likely not. It’s expected that those professions will be filled by women so young boys will be discouraged from pursuing those career paths. With engineering, construction, and physics, are perceived as more “manly” than the others mentioned above, so young girls will tend to shy away from careers associated with those subjects. It may not seem attractive to be a part of a job meant for rugged, strong men. As for young boys wishing to go into more feminine jobs, you can probably guess the name-calling they experience if they want to take on a more “female” career in life. It’s quite disconcerting that the profession or college major you’re interested in can apparently define who you are.

To test the stereotypes out a little bit, I went around the school and asked about 15 people what they thought my college major was going to be just by my outward appearance. The most popular responses were “nursing,” “education,” and “art.” I also received “daycare owner” and “gender studies” as well; no one successfully guessed what my major was going to be. I’m not sure whether these responses were because of my outward appearance, or because of my gender itself.  I’m a blonde-haired, blue-eyed, 5’3” girl who’s planning on going into astrophysics. Either way, there seemed to be a pattern in the answers I received: They all had to do with artistic and more nurturing aspects of life. Those aspects are often perceived to be more appreciated by women, even if all of those majors above besides nursing, don’t have significant gender gaps.

The reason these stereotypes exist is thought to be because of the experiences adolescents go through in middle school and high school. Boys are expected to be good at math and science, while girls are expected to be good at English and home economics (how boring). This definitely isn’t the case here in Weedsport, as I have never felt awkward for taking these classes here, nor has anyone ever told me I couldn’t take those classes because I was a girl. I have gotten comments about how I’ll be “surrounded by boys” in college if I pursue physics, and it may be “awkward” to be around more guys than girls. That may be the case, as 89 percent of people in physics are male, but who knows? I’ll be around people sharing a similar interest as me. Just because I may be around more guys than girls in classes, doesn’t mean I’ll be shut out from other girls altogether. The experience will be totally worth it because I want to accomplish as much as Marie Curie, a Polish physicist, did one day.

So, as someone who is about to venture into a major that is predominantly male, I have to say that I’m excited I’ll be contributing to physics as a female. I’m not worried about being stereotyped because it’s inevitable. I’m not going to let words turn me off from something I’ve loved since I was little – science. If you’re a girl reading this and you’re interested in science, technology, engineering, math, or whatever else may be considered to be for guys, please go for it. If you’re a boy reading this, and you have an interest in fashion, nursing, interior design, social work, and other “female” jobs, I encourage you to go against the stereotypes. Don’t give up what you love because others don’t think your gender would fit in with the occupational norm.