Florida State Researcher Examines What Impacts Women’s Persistence in STEM Disciplines

Roxanne Hughes, an educational outreach coordinator at the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory in Tallahassee, was recently honored by Phi Delta Kappa International for having one of the five best doctoral dissertations on education in the world. Dr. Hughes, who completed her doctorate at Florida State University, examined why women tend to leave majors in STEM disciplines and what factors tended to increase the chance that women would remain in science-oriented disciplines.

Her research found that women who remained in STEM fields had strong support from families, faculty, and peers. The opportunity to participate in research at the undergraduate level also had a strong impact on whether women remained in STEM disciplines as did the presence of women role models on the faculty of undergraduate institutions.

A video in which Dr. Hughes discusses her research can be accessed here.

Dr. Hughes dissertation, entitled “The Process of Choosing Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Careers by Undergraduate Women: A Narrative Life History Analysis,” may be downloaded here.