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Journal of Women and Minorities in Science and Engineering

Published 6 issues per year

ISSN Print: 1072-8325

ISSN Online: 1940-431X

SJR: 0.514 SNIP: 0.875 CiteScore™:: 2.4 H-Index: 27

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"I’M IN THE MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES BECAUSE…" EXAMINING UNDERREPRESENTED STUDENTS’ MOTIVATIONS FOR PURSUING MATH

Volume 25, Issue 1, 2019, pp. 25-52
DOI: 10.1615/JWomenMinorScienEng.2018020357
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ABSTRACT

For decades, researchers have attempted to unlock the mystery behind the continued underrepresentation of key groups in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields. While findings often point to complex and intersecting individual and contextual factors, rarely do such studies directly (and simply) ask underrepresented students why they are in the STEM fields. The current study gives voice to the reasons mathematically-talented, underrepresented, domestic students pursue postsecondary degrees in the mathematical sciences, which are an important subset of the larger STEM fields. Analysis of qualitative data gathered through an online survey reveals that students' reasons for pursuing their degrees are due to their affinity and attitudes towards math, previous personal experiences, engagement with mathematics, and view of the utility of mathematics. Perhaps most striking were the ways in which students described mathematics and their attraction to the nature of math as a field. Implication for practitioners, including how the characteristics of math are communicated to students, and recommendations for future research, which focus on the importance of considering the nature of math, are discussed.

Forthcoming Articles

Mitigating Barriers, Scaffolding Success: Institutional Supports for Black Undergraduate Women in Engineering Programs Meseret Hailu, Neelakshi Rajeev Tewari, Brooke Coley Underrepresented Students Pursuing Mathematics-Intensive Degrees: Changes after Transitioning to College Alison Marzocchi What do STEM Clubs do? The Effect of College Club Participation on Career Confidence and Gender Inclusion Guillermo Dominguez Garcia, Jennifer Glass Validating Practices and Messages that Promote Women’s Engineering Classroom Belongingness: An Intersectional Approach Dina Verdin, A Lili Castillo Examining the Role of Institutional Support on International Doctoral Women’s STEM Persistence and Mental Health Aisha Farra, Aashika Anantharaman, Sarah Swanson, Kerrie Wilkins-Yel, Jennifer Bekki, Nedim Yel, Ashley Randall, Bianca Bernstein Searching for safe space: Student veterans’ uneven pathways to STEM careers by race Brittany Hunt, Jae Hoon Lim Does Race, Ethnicity or Gender of the Mentor Affect Whether They Will be a “Good Mentor”? A Qualitative Analysis of Students’ Perceptions Reuben May, Christine Stanley, America Soto-Arzat, Jennifer Ackerman PSYCHOLOGICAL SAFETY AND TEAM MEMBER EFFECTIVENESS OF MINORITIZED STUDENTS IN ENGINEERING EDUCATION Behzad Beigpourian, Matthew Ohland Perceptions of Department Chair Roles and Responsibilities in Career Progression and Success of Women STEM Faculty Stephanie Jones, Patricia Ryan Pal “Barbed-Wire Boundaries”: Hidden Curriculum, First-Generation and Low-Income Engineering Students, and Internship Acquisition Jerry Yang, Joseph Towles, Sheri Sheppard, Sara Atwood “I Want to Make an Impact”: The Science Identity and Career Goals of Black and Latinx Science and Engineering Postdoctoral Scholars Sylvia Mendez, Kathryn Watson, Kathryn Starkey, Valerie Conley Care Work, Science Brokering, and Career Motivations: How Hispanic/Latinx Young Adults in STEM Express Social Agency during the COVID-19 Pandemic Angela Frederick, Angelica Monarrez, Danielle Morales Bridging the gap: A sequential mixed methods study of trust networks in graduate application, admissions, and enrollment Cynthia Villarreal, Julie Posselt, Theresa Hernandez, Alexander Rudolph
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