5
53 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON EDUCATION, VOL. ]18, NO. 1, FEBRUARY 1975 neering students for these funds. The research and the publications that come out of the universities and the industrial laboratories are not identifiable by sex, unless the author wishes to do so. The footnote found on page 126 of "Discontinuous Automatic Control," Irmgard Flugge- Lotz, Princeton University Press 19.53, states the follow- ing: "'These equations correspond to those found in Division N, Dynamics of the Airplane, by B. MNI. Jones, Aerodynamic Theory, Vol. V, W. F. Durand, Ed., Calif. Institute of Technology, 1943, page 171. Jones uses different notations (explained in Tables 1 and 2 on page 133 of his article)." The author could have used the word "the" in- stead of "his," but she chose not to. Important scientific and eingneering work must continue to be accomplished and it must continue to be sexless. There is no such thing as a feminist view of circuit theory. The Search for Women Faculty Members JAMlES D. BRUCE, MEMBER, IEEE Abstract-The recruitment of women for appointment to engi- neering faculties is best described as a search for members of a class of professionals which are in extremely short supply. After discussing the current, low representation of women on engineering faculties (and in the profession), projections are made for the future and suggestions are presented to increase the number of women beyond that projected. INTRODUCTION BEFORE we discuss the search for and the develop- ment of women faculty for engineering schools, we should first understand why it is not only desirable but necessary for engineering schools to have women on their faculty. There are at least four reasons. First, we must recognize that every individual has the right to pursue a career without discrimination, that takes full advan- tage of that individual's talents, training, capabilities, and inclinations. Second, as more and more women high school students express interests in mathematics and science and upon entering college major in engineering, we must provide role models with whom they can identify. That is, women students need women faculty, who fully utilizing their capabilities and training are successful both as engineers and as women, to serve as models for them to strive toward. Third, women will broaden the sensitivities and perspectives of our engineering faculties. At M.I.T., they have been leaders in interacting with the individualities of each student. Women faculty have also been found to be more concerned with the emotional development of their students and with helping them attain a deeper level of self-understanding [1]. Fourth, there is now the legal requirement, given in Executive Order 11246 and in guidelines of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, that an affirmative action search Manuscript received September 20, 1974. The author is with the Department of Electrical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Mlass. 02139. be made in connection with each faculty opening. What this means can be described as follows. For each faculty opening, as described by specifications of experience, field of expertise, etc., a search must be made to identify candidates, paying particular attention to women and ethnic minorities, qualified for the position. Affirmative action requires that the position be offered to a woman or a member of an ethnic minority who meets the qualifi- cations even if a more qualified individual is identified. Said explicitly, preference over more qualified non- minority male candidates must be given to a woman or a member of an ethnic minority whose qualifications exceed the minimum qualifications for the position. WHERE DO WE STAND? At the present time, there are over 300 colleges and universities in the United States that award Bachelor's degrees in one or more fields of engineering. Of these in- stitutions, 237 have at least one program accredited by the Engineers' Council for Professional Development. According to the American Society for Engineering Edu- cation [2], approximately 13,700 faculty of professorial rank (based on responses form 196 of these 237 institu- tions) teach in the colleges and universities which offer engineering degrees and have ECPD accredited programs. M. E. Sloan [3 has reported, based on a 1972 survey to which 170 of the ECPD accredited institutions responded, that 44 women held professorial appointments in engi- neering schools. Even assuming that the number of women on engineering faculties has doubled since 1972, women constitute considerably less than one percent of the en- gineering faculty. Thus, women are less represented on the engineering faculty than they are in the student body. (See Table I.) Referring to Table II, it is relatively easy to see a primary reason why women have not been appointed to engineering faculties in large numbers. In recent years,

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Page 1: The Search for Women Faculty Members

53IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON EDUCATION, VOL. ]18, NO. 1, FEBRUARY 1975

neering students for these funds. The research and thepublications that come out of the universities and theindustrial laboratories are not identifiable by sex, unlessthe author wishes to do so. The footnote found on page 126of "Discontinuous Automatic Control," Irmgard Flugge-Lotz, Princeton University Press 19.53, states the follow-ing: "'These equations correspond to those found inDivision N, Dynamics of the Airplane, by B. MNI. Jones,

Aerodynamic Theory, Vol. V, W. F. Durand, Ed., Calif.Institute of Technology, 1943, page 171. Jones uses differentnotations (explained in Tables 1 and 2 on page 133 of hisarticle)." The author could have used the word "the" in-stead of "his," but she chose not to. Important scientificand eingneering work must continue to be accomplishedand it must continue to be sexless. There is no such thingas a feminist view of circuit theory.

The Search for Women Faculty Members

JAMlES D. BRUCE, MEMBER, IEEE

Abstract-The recruitment of women for appointment to engi-neering faculties is best described as a search for members of aclass of professionals which are in extremely short supply. Afterdiscussing the current, low representation of women on engineeringfaculties (and in the profession), projections are made for the futureand suggestions are presented to increase the number of womenbeyond that projected.

INTRODUCTION

BEFORE we discuss the search for and the develop-ment of women faculty for engineering schools, we

should first understand why it is not only desirable butnecessary for engineering schools to have women on theirfaculty. There are at least four reasons. First, we mustrecognize that every individual has the right to pursuea career without discrimination, that takes full advan-tage of that individual's talents, training, capabilities,and inclinations. Second, as more and more women highschool students express interests in mathematics andscience and upon entering college major in engineering,we must provide role models with whom they can identify.That is, women students need women faculty, who fullyutilizing their capabilities and training are successfulboth as engineers and as women, to serve as models forthem to strive toward. Third, women will broaden thesensitivities and perspectives of our engineering faculties.At M.I.T., they have been leaders in interacting with theindividualities of each student. Women faculty have alsobeen found to be more concerned with the emotionaldevelopment of their students and with helping themattain a deeper level of self-understanding [1]. Fourth,there is now the legal requirement, given in ExecutiveOrder 11246 and in guidelines of the Department of Health,Education, and Welfare, that an affirmative action search

Manuscript received September 20, 1974.The author is with the Department of Electrical Engineering,

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Mlass. 02139.

be made in connection with each faculty opening. Whatthis means can be described as follows. For each facultyopening, as described by specifications of experience,field of expertise, etc., a search must be made to identifycandidates, paying particular attention to women andethnic minorities, qualified for the position. Affirmativeaction requires that the position be offered to a woman ora member of an ethnic minority who meets the qualifi-cations even if a more qualified individual is identified.Said explicitly, preference over more qualified non-minority male candidates must be given to a woman or amember of an ethnic minority whose qualifications exceedthe minimum qualifications for the position.

WHERE DO WE STAND?At the present time, there are over 300 colleges and

universities in the United States that award Bachelor'sdegrees in one or more fields of engineering. Of these in-stitutions, 237 have at least one program accredited bythe Engineers' Council for Professional Development.According to the American Society for Engineering Edu-cation [2], approximately 13,700 faculty of professorialrank (based on responses form 196 of these 237 institu-tions) teach in the colleges and universities which offerengineering degrees and have ECPD accredited programs.M. E. Sloan [3 has reported, based on a 1972 survey towhich 170 of the ECPD accredited institutions responded,that 44 women held professorial appointments in engi-neering schools. Even assuming that the number of womenon engineering faculties has doubled since 1972, womenconstitute considerably less than one percent of the en-gineering faculty. Thus, women are less represented onthe engineering faculty than they are in the student body.(See Table I.)Referring to Table II, it is relatively easy to see a

primary reason why women have not been appointed toengineering faculties in large numbers. In recent years,

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IEE5E TRANSACTIONS ON EDUCATION, FEBRUARY 1975

TABLE I

ENGINEERING ENROLLMENT -- TOTAL UNITED STATES

SOURCE: ENGINEERING MANPOWER COMMISSION OF ENGINEERS JOINT COUNCILEngineering and Technology Enrollments Series

1973-74 1972-73No. % No.

1971-72No.

1970-71 1969-70 1968-69No. % No. % No. %

1 967-68No. %

Year 2 TOTAL 40,519 42,272 47,948 53,419 52,972 55,615 56,975

Women 1,496 3.7% 1,119 2.6% 964 2.0% 817 1.5% 719 1.4% D D

Year 3 TOTAL 41,673 45,874 48,543 49,855 50,039 50,274 50,483

Women 1,137 2.7% 970 2.1% 725 1.5% 598 1.2% 540 1.1% D D

Year 4A TOTAL 52,588 54,481 55,768 56,795 56,406 55,869 52,140

Women 1,029 2.0% 802 1.5% 583 1.0% 522 0.9% 492 0.9% 0 0

B,C __ _EMaster'sB TOTAL 44,527 43,895 45,097 49,069 47,087 47,352 34,231

Women 1,128 2.5% 964 2.2% 723 1.6% 707 1.4% 985 2.1% D D

Doctoral TOTAL 16,079 17,382 18,710 19,751 19,870 19,931 15,376

Women 288 1.8% 293 1.7% 234 1.3% 199 1.0% 190 1.0% D DI. I-

Includes fifth-year students.Includes other post baccalaureat and pre-doctoral degrees.Includes part-time students.Data not available.Full-time students only, part-time not available.

TABLE II

WOMEN ENGINEERING GRADUATES, 1952-1973

Year1951-521952-531953-541954-551955-561956-571957-581958-591959-601960-611961 -621962-631963-641964-651965-661966-671967-681968-691969-701970-711971-721972-73

22 Year Totals

Bachelor's

523362627681109121145135125130146139146184177328358353525624

4,111

Master s*

1715131320152024262740323444767858

107170158299226

1 ,512

Doctorate

2410

014l364

117

109

115

2316253548

226

* Includes Engineer's degrees.SOURCE: 1951-52 to 1968-69: USOE Earned Degrees Conferred Series.

1969-70 and 1970-71: Engineering Manpower Commission (uncorrected for those schools not providingdata by sex).

1971-72 and 1972-73: Engineering Manpower Commission (includes estimates for those schools notproviding data by sex).

A.B.C.D.E.

54

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BRUCE: WOMEN FACULTY MEMBERS

most faculty appointments have been made to individualswith doctorates, usually in engineering, although someappointments have been made to individuals withdoctorates in physics, chemistry, mathematics, economics,political science and law. However, during the 22 yearperiod, from 1951-52 to 1972-73, only 226 doctorates inengineering were awarded to women, and over half ofthese (124) were awarded in the four year period 1969-70to 1972-73. By comparison, a total of 15,000 doctorateswere awarded in engineering in this four year period.Even though the number of women receiving engineer-

ing degrees at all levels is small, there are several impor-tant facets of these numbers (Table II) that should benoted. First, if we assume that individuals receiving thedoctorate in year N received the bachelor's degree inyear N-4, we see that an average of 15% of the womenreceiving bachelor's degrees in engineering receive doc-torates in four years. This compares quite favorably tothe figure of 4% for blacks, and 10% for the total bache-lor's degree population. And, second, the number ofwomen receiving degrees at all levels has increased signif-icantly from year to year. Specifically, the number ofwomen receiving bachelor's and master's degrees have in-creased at a compound rate of 19% per year over thelast four years and the number of women receiving doc-torates has increased at a compound rate of 41% duringthis period. For comparison, the growth rates for thetotal population of degree recipients were 1.4%, 3.0%,and 1.5% per year for bachelor's, master's, and doctoralrecipients, respectively.

Thus, while the number of women on our engineeringfaculties is small, the number of women receiving engi-neering doctorates per year is growing at a considerablerate. Further, a higher percentage of women who receivebachelor's degrees in engineering go on to doctoral studies.

PROBLEMS TO BE FACED IN INCREASINGTHE REPRESENTATION OF WOMEN ON

ENGINEERING FACULTIES

The greatest problem engineering schools face in in-creasing the representation of women on their facultiesis the lack of women with engineering doctorates. Anotherserious problem is the current no growth status of engi-neering schools. It is reported [4] that engineering schoolsnow have an excess capacity and that their undergraduatestudent bodies could increase by an average of about 25%without requiring additional faculty. Thus, the tendencyis to reduce faculty size limiting new appointments toreplacements of some fraction of the retirements and res-ignations. For this reason new appointments tend to be"slotted" that is, made in a rather tightly definedfield rather than a more broadly defined one. Thus, inaddition to there being fewer total faculty openings,many of those that do exist will be sought from verynarrow professional areas effectively reducing the proba-

bility of the appointment of a women to fill the opening.There are two other problems which must be mentioned

although they are not peculiar to women. These are prob-lems associated with the funding of faculty research andthe support of graduate students. During the first halfof the sixties, federal research funding grew at a rate of11% per year in real terms. More recently, there has beenessentially zero growth, in real terms, of federal researchfunding at universities and colleges. (As a percentage oftotal federal expenditures, federal research and develop-ment expenditures decreased from approximately 12% infiscal 1964 to 7.3%s in fiscal 1972.) This has resulted insmaller research contracts and grants from federal spon-sors to faculty members and to difficulties in obtainingresearch funding for new faculty.With regard to graduate student support, the number

of federally supported fellowships and traineeships hasdecreased from a high of 51,500 in the 1967-68 academicyear to 6,600 for 1973-74. This 85 percent reduction offederal support coincided with the end of the WoodrowWilson Fellowship Program as well as other private fellow-ship programs. These major reductions in fellowships andtraineeships, coupled with zero growth in federal re-search funds which prohibits an increase in research as-sistantships large enough to offset the loss of fellowshipsand traineeships, has significantly reduced the number ofsupported graduate student positions. Thus, all studentsface a stiffer competition for support.

SOURCES OF WOMEN CANDIDATES FORENGINEERING FACULTY POSITIONS

In engineering, the majority of faculty appointmentsare made at the assistant professor level from the popula-tion of recent recipients of engineering doctorates. Thishas generally also been true when women or membersof ethnic minorities have been appointed to engineeringfaculties. However, because of the small numbers in-volved, we must look beyond this obvious source of candi-dates. One such source is that body of women with doc-torates or the equivalent experience who are working asengineers in industry, government or education. (It shouldbe understood that by including educational institutionshere, I am in no way endorsing or encouraging the "pirat-ing" of faculty from other educational institutions. How-ever, there will be instances when a move between insti-tutions will best serve the involved individual's career.)

In this regard it is worthwhile to further note thatmany individuals doing engineering work are not engineersat all. For example, many physicists do engineering workrelated to semiconductor devices; many mathematiciansdo work in computer engineering and science as well asin the development and use of numerical techniques suchas finite element analysis; etc. Also, as engineering hasbroadened in recent years to begin to include the inter-action of technology and society within its purview, we

Page 4: The Search for Women Faculty Members

IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON EDUCATION, FEBRUARY 1975)

have found economists, political scientists, managementscientists, lawyers, and others involved in the engineeringprocess. Since engineering analysis and design at thisinterface between technology and society must be taughtto our students, individuals who are professional econo-mists, political scientists, etc., and who work to apply thetools of their profession in the context of engineeringanalysis and design, as broadly defined, must be added toour engineering faculties.

Thus, our potential women faculty candidate pool in-cludes in addition to those who are about to receive theirengineering doctorates and those women with engineeringdoctorates who are already employed, women whosedegrees are in fields other than engineering but who areinvolved in the engineering analysis and design process.These too, may be those just receiving their doctoratesas well as those already employed.Another point to be made is that appointments other

than regular, full-time ones for example, visiting or part-time professorial appointments-can often achieve manyof the objectives for which we strive in appointing womento engineering faculties. Thus, many women engineersqualified for faculty appointments, but thoroughly sat-isfied by their industrial or government careers, might bewilling to spend a semester or a year on campus or, forthat matter, to accept a part-time faculty appointment.Appointments such as these are valuable in that they canprovide the student with accurate feedback on the "realworld" that would not otherwise be obtained. Such appoint-ments also provide a mechanism for bringing to the campusindividuals who, in a way quite diflerent from the regularfaculty, apply their skills in the definition and solution ofproblems.From the preceding comments, it may appear that the

location and identification of women candidates for facultypositions is not at all difficult. This is certainly not thecase. Women who have recently received their doctoratesor who are now doing doctoral work in engineering have areasonable probability of being included in one or anotherof the listings of women engineers [5] which are availablefrom time to time. While these lists are quite helpfulthey only provide a starting point. The potential candi-date must be contacted, and if selected to fill a facultyopening, sold on the position.

Identifying candidates from government and industry ismore difficult. As a rule the listings that are available areless complete-that is, they do not cover the entire set ofengineering disciplines, or engineering is only one smallarea of their universe of disciplines, both of which lead toa more sparse listing of women in engineering. Some of thelists available are given in [6]. Other approaches are viacolleagues in industry and government, a search of papersin the technical literature for women authors, and asearch in biographical listings such as Engineers of Dis-tinction, Who's Who, etc. While extremely time consum-ing, such searches will from time to time yield results.

THE FUTUREIf women continue to graduate with engineering doc-

torates at the rate of the last four years, ending with the1972-73 academic year, we can expect that about 70women received doctorates in the 1973-74 academic year,that about 100 will receive doctorates in 1974-75, 140 in1975-76, and 200 in 1976 77. Even assuming that a num-ber of women equal to the total of these four figures joinengineering faculties, only about 600 women will be mem-bers of engineering faculties at the beginning of the 1977-78 academic year. This would be between 4 and 5% of thetotal faculty expected to be employed. Thus, while thiswould result in a situation substantially better than thepresent, there would still be considerable room for im-provement.

Ultimately, the only solution to the problem of increas-ing the representation of women on engineering facultiesis to graduate more women engineers. This means that wemust go back to our high schools and junior high schoolsand "turn on" the young women students there to acareer in engineering. We must get them excited aboutengineering to the point where they consider it as a possi-bility and take the necessary science and mathematicssubjects to preserve this option. As these women graduatefrom high school and as some of them elect engineeringas their college major, they must be encouraged andchallenged by what it offers as a career. Upon graduationfrom college the best students must be urged on to graduateschool.

This, of course, requires that financial aid be identifiedfor their support. As indicated earlier, the loss of federalfellowships and traineeships over the last few years hasmade this more difficult. While the number of researchassistantships will eventually increase to partially offsetthis loss, it will be necessary to be imaginative in identify-ing additional sources of funds. At M.I.T. we were partic-ularly fortunate last year in having a donor endow approx-imately 10 fellowships for women. These fellowships willbe awarded yearly for graduate study at M.I.T. in scienceor engineering. Other possibilities include the provisionof funds for pre-doctoral loans which will be forgiven at aspecified rate if the individual receiving the loan entersthe teaching profession, funds for use as a wasting fundto supplement interest payments thereby permitting auniversity to borrow money at commercial rates for loanto students at much lower rates, etc.

Further, for those women entering faculty careers im-mediately after receiving their doctorates, there is theproblem of initial research funding. Here there is a needwhereby research support can be provided either througha block grant from one or more federal agencies or by anendowment or wasting fund provided by an individual ora foundation. Such funds should at least provide two yearsof salary support (including employee benefits and over-head costs) at half-time plus some discretionary fundseach year. Such a procedure would give the new appointee

rr6

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IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON EDUCATION, VOL. E-18, NO. 1, FEBRUARY 197.

time to begin her research program and submit proposalsfor funding from external sources. (A program similar tothis was funded in the early 1960's at M1.I.T. by the FordFoundation. During the 10 years of its operation, a totalof 174 individuals held appointments as Ford Postdoc-toral Fellows in Engineering for periods of from one tothree years.)

CONCLUSION

On most engineering faculties, women have a lower rep-resentation than they have in the corresponding under-graduate student body. While this representation will notreach equilibrium for years to come, we must strive toadd qualified women to our faculties as rapidly as possible.Once on the faculty, we must give women the same oppor-tunities we give to other faculty members to advancetheir careers. The problems we face in successfully movingfrom our present state to the more desirable one of thefuture requires, for its successful solution, the coopera-tion, imagination and ingenuity of everyone in the en-gineering profession.

REFERENCES1. Tidhall, M. E., The Search for Talented Women, Change Maga-

zine, Vol. 6, No. 4, pp. 51-52, 64, May 1974.2. Enigineering College Rtesearch aind Graduate Sttudy, Enginieering

Edtucationi, Vol. 64, No. 6, March 1974.

3. Sloan, M. E., private communiicationi as reported in Peden, I. C.,Itecruiting, Retention anid Promotion of Womein Faculty: Tacti-cal Considerationis for Affirmative Action, Event No. 1320, ASEEAnnual Conference, June 17-20, 1974.

4. An Engineering Education RZeport: System Response to a Chang-ing World, Center for Policy Alternatives, Massachusetts Insti-tute of Technology, Cambridge, Mass., September 1973.

5. For example:

Women and Minority Engineering Students, a report by theEngineering Manipower Commission of the Engineers' JointCouncil, N. Y., N. Y., April 1974.

Women in Engineering, published by the Purdue Studenit Sec-tion of the Society of Women Engineers, Purdue University,West Lafayette, Indiana.

Women in Engineerinig, compiled by the Office of the l)ean ofEngineering, M.I.T., Cambridge, Massachutsetts.

Register of Womeni and Minority Males with Doctorates inCivil Engineering, Mechanics, and Allied Fields, distributedby R. A. Eubanks, University of Illinois at Urbania, Urbaina,Illinois.

Roster of Rtecent Women Ph.D. Recipients and I)octoralCandidates Interested in Academic Positions in Enigineer-ing, compiled by M. E. Sloan for the IEEE Committee onProfessional Opportuniities for Women.

6. For example:Listings by search organizations stuch as:

The Catalyst6 East 82 StreetNew York, N. Y. 10028

Affirmative Action Register10 South Brentwood BoulevardSt. Louils, Missouri 63105

And by professional societies, such as

The 1973-74 l)irectory of Women Mathematicians, com-piled by the Americani Mathematical Society.

Faculty Women: Strategies for the Future

IRENE C. PEDEN, FELLOW, IEEE, AND MARTHA E. SLOAN, MEMBER, IEEE

Abstract-This paper addresses the topic of women who are nowengineering educators. It examines their progression through theacademic ranks, their status, and the outlook for the immediatefuture, both in terms of their regular academic duties and theirprospects for university administration. Strategies for affirmativeaction in connection with promotion, retention, and tenure are sug-gested and justified, as are related strategies for motivating somefaculty women engineers to administrative positions.

It is concluded that women have the necessary potential and thatsubstantive changes in traditional faculty and administrative atti-tudes will be needed to implement such change.

INTRODUCTION

AS THE NUMBER of women students in engineeringcolleges escalates across the country, and universities

Maniuscript received October 7, 1974.I. C. Pedeni is with the College of Engineering, University of

Washington, Seattle, Wash. 98105.M. E. Sloan is with the Department of Electrical Engineering,

Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Mich. 49931.

attempt to identify advanced graduate students and otherprofessional women who are qualified for and interested inengineering faculty positions, questions are being raisedregarding past, present, and future attitudes and actionsrelated to women in engineering education. Have womenbeen treated as valued colleagues and accorded equitabletreatment in their professional environments? What kindsof futures can be predicted for the newly hired womeneducators who are now sought so eagerly by academicinstitutions?

In partial response to these and other questions, newdata relevant to engineering faculty women and adminis-trators have been collected and summarized for this paper.The authors' personal experiences [1], [2] have beenbrought to bear, particularly in connection with uni-versity administration where there have never been enoughfaculty women to provide a valid statistical data base,especially for women engineers. We draw conclusions aboutthe patterns of advancement experienced by faculty

57