Survey Reveals Reasons Why Women Leave Engineering

A new study led by researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee examined the reasons why women leave engineering fields. The authors surveyed nearly 1,500 women who had left the engineering profession to find out their reasons for changing careers.

The authors note that the field of engineering has one of the highest rates of attrition for women among all the STEM disciplines. And the high turnover rates continue despite efforts to improve the recruitment and retention rate of women in the field.

The results of the survey showed the three main reasons why women left engineering:

• Inadequate or unequal compensation and work-life demands that made it impossible to succeed.
• Unmet achievement, a feeling that they were not being used effectively.
• Lack or recognition for their work and poor opportunities for advancement.

The study, “Women’s Reasons for Leaving the Engineering Field,” was published in the May issue of the journal Frontiers of Psychology. It may be accessed here.