<p>In doing college research for Spygirl, I heard from a recent grad that she would not necessarily recommend her alma mater because she and her female classmates did not receive the same level of professorial support as their male counterparts.</p>
<p>Are there programs and or schools you would recommend for women in STEM or do you have suggestions of colleges to avoid?</p>
<p>[The</a> Women’s College Coalition](<a href=“http://womenscolleges.org/]The”>http://womenscolleges.org/)</p>
<p>Precisely why I chose one of those institutions back in the last century.</p>
<p>Oh, Happymom, that is definitely one solutiona and a good one, but Spygirl has made it quite clear that she won’t be applying to an all girls school.</p>
<p>^What major(s) is she interested in?</p>
<p>Check out the engineering majors forum for related threads, one of them pretty recent.</p>
<p>Here’s one recommendation - WPI. They are working hard to attract more female students, and are often generous with merit scholarships for highly qualified females. Check out the little video on this page from their admissions site -
[Undergraduate</a> Admissions: Women - WPI](<a href=“http://www.wpi.edu/admissions/undergraduate/perspective/women.html]Undergraduate”>http://www.wpi.edu/admissions/undergraduate/perspective/women.html)</p>
<p>I’m a current student at Carnegie Mellon and it’s wonderful here. Obviously very strong programs, and a strong campus presence of organizations like SWE (Society of Women Engineers) and Women@SCS (which, in addition to serving as a resource for women/minorities in CS, hosts a ton of other events to help people learn more about CS and their opportunities).</p>
<p>[SWE</a> at Carnegie Mellon | Society of Women Engineers](<a href=“http://www.cmuswe.com/]SWE”>http://www.cmuswe.com/)
[Women</a> in Computer Science: Carnegie Mellon’s Women@SCS](<a href=“http://women.cs.cmu.edu/]Women”>http://women.cs.cmu.edu/)</p>
<p>A close friend of mine from high school is doing STEM at Harvey Mudd, and she’s found the environment there great and supportive.</p>
<p>Spygirl is interested in math, astrophysics and astronomy. Engineering doesn’t appeal to her, but neither does being a lab rat. At this point, she’s not sure what she wants to do. Although she has said she’d like to work on the super collider :)</p>
<p>Depending on the STEM subject LACs might be a good choice. My DD2 loves Lewis and Clark college and has had great support from her math professors.</p>
<p>^I don’t think she will have a problem. I might have concerns that the culture in a computer science department may not be welcoming to females, at least on the TA level, but I don’t think math/physics will be a problem. </p>
<p>You can always check with girls at the schools you are interested in, but I wouldn’t limit her options to schools which ostensibly appear to be going out of their way to be welcoming to females.</p>
<p>I haven’t heard any complaints from girls at MIT in terms of gender discrimination.</p>
<p>WPI is one of the schools sending her mail. And Carnegie Mellon would be a great option. If only she’d consider east coast schools. At this point, she’s only interested in colleges on the west coast. That may change.</p>
<p>Oh and Erin’s Dad, her aunt and her Dad’s BFF went to Lewis and Clark and loved it. Alas, it’s too close to home and to Maxwell’s large extended family.</p>
<p>Collegealum: Not sure she’ll have the test scores to get into MIT if she’d consider Boston.</p>
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<p>I disagree wholeheartedly with this. My D is a CS major and has not encountered any problems because she is female. She’s even been encouraged to participate in research at her college.</p>
<p>Just curious why you feel that she would not be welcome in a comp sci department?</p>
<p>b@r!um is a good person to ask about math programs. She studied at an LAC, but did a lot of advanced courses at a nearby university and now is in grads school.</p>
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<p>I know a couple of people who are in the comp. sci field who say there is discrimination against girls in industry. I have no knowledge of it going on in universities, but I thought it was possible it still occurs in some places.</p>
<p>All of the universities seem to be clamoring for qualified female applicants, but are the professors? That’s where the rubber meets the road.</p>
<p>I think that most professors are pretty much gender-blind at this point. There were faculty members at several excellent institutions who would not accept female grad students, at the point that I was starting grad school. To the best of my knowledge, all of these people are retired now. </p>
<p>A few faculty in various universities will go out of their way to encourage young women students–luckily, I encountered a few. I don’t think that it’s easy to tell about a department from the outside, in advance, though (sadly).</p>
<p>I would say that most of the LAC’s would be better choices then major universities. Maybe consider schools with female presidents??? That might help. I know that a lot of schools that are more STEM oriented are heavily male and are giving big bucks to female candidates but like agentninetynine, are the profs on board with that. I just don’t think there is any way to gauge this without talking to the female populations in specific schools. A lot of visits might be in order.</p>
<p>I’m with ProudCSDad on the issue of discrimination. My D never had a CS class until her second year of college - and she will graduate with a CS degree in May (from the e-school, no less). Her advisor and head of the CS department was a woman. The professors she’s had have not once discouraged her because of her sex - it has been nothing but a supportive environment. Oh, and she has a job after graduation. With a company headed by a woman. I don’t think her experience is unique in the slightest - women are actively supported and encouraged at her school. I’d encourage your D to find the programs that are most attractive to her and try to visit and meet with professors, if at all possible.</p>
<p>This whole issue has blindsided me. It never occurred to me that this would be an issue. I worked in a male dominated field most of my life and had few problems. It’s sad that any woman should have to face this in the 21st century. </p>
<p>She is looking at mostly LAC’s because she prefers the smaller setting and more intimate classrooms. I agree, SteveMA that visits are in order.</p>
<p>Do you think that asking faculty members about the success rate of women in their programs will illicit any real insight? So far she has one interview with a faculty member lined up.</p>
<p>I would recommed looking at Harvey Mudd. They have been making a concerted effort to enroll (and support) more women. Has a female president. LAC with STEM focus and all the resources of the Claremont Consortium.</p>
<p>Maybe this will help [Full</a> Ranking: Best Colleges For Women And Minorities In STEM - Forbes.com](<a href=“http://www.forbes.com/2010/12/10/best-colleges-minorities-women-science-lifestyle-education-stem-table.html]Full”>Full Ranking: Best Colleges For Women And Minorities In STEM)</p>