The Relations of Ethnicity to Female Engineering Students' Educational Experiences and College and Career Plans in an Ethnically Diverse Learning Environment

This paper describes a mixed-methods study employing a social cognitive theoretical framework that emphasizes the interplay of person factors, environment, and behavior to explore the educational experiences of female students in an ethnically diverse learning environment. Specifically, we investigate the relations of ethnicity to female students' perceptions and experiences related to engineering, as well as their selection of and persistence in undergraduate engineering majors. An ethnically diverse sample of female engineering undergraduates at an urban research university completed an online survey and participated in semi-structured interviews. Results revealed that participants of all ethnicities perceived strong institutional and peer supports in this diverse learning environment. Additionally, differences in participants' perceived barriers for achieving engineering educational and career plans were found based on ethnicity and parental level of education.