There is no breakdown in admissions of the engineering school. Anyone know how many females/males? Also if any females who are studying engineering at Wash U now can speak to what sort of environment it is- that would be helpful
I can’t speak for WashU, but for many other schools on this level, the ratio is approaching 40/60
Hi! I’m a female biomedical engineering major at WashU. It really honestly depends which engineering major you’re looking at. BME is 50/50, CS is 30/70, and EE is something abysmal like 15/85, if that. MechE might be close to CS? Not totally sure.
Honestly, people don’t care what gender you are, as long as you get your work done. I’ve worked with guys, girls, and mixed groups on engineering classes, a business class, and even a design-ish class, and I’ve been treated with respect in every case. There was only one time I wasn’t, and even then it was a function of his personality and not sexism.
For females in engineering, there are tons of support groups. W&E is a new program started by the Dean’s wife to match women with role models in engineering. We also have a SWE on campus. I joined AΩΕ, which is a professional and social sorority for women in engineering and technical sciences, to find a solid group of women with similar interests. So even if you are in, say, EE, you won’t have to feel isolated or like you’re in a boy’s club. (Not to say that you would anyway without the extra groups, because the WashU environment and student body really doesn’t support or perpetuate a boy’s club feeling.)
Thank you for your detailed answer. There really isn’t much info about engineering there online. I didn’t realize there were professional sororities- is it fun? Do you have time time for a social life?
I love my sorority! As I mentioned, mine is both professional AND social, so I would say that it is a part of social life, but yes I also have time for life outside of it. WashU students are likely to be involved in multiple things, and student organizations know this, so it’s not too hard for the organized student to balance multiple clubs and classes.