Charting the Course for Gender Equity: Intersectional Insights from Female Graduate Students in Engineering

Background: Despite continuous initiatives to support women in engineering, there is a critical gap in research and practice in engineering graduate studies. Purpose: This study explores the challenges and supports impacting women’s decision to pursue engineering graduate studies. Framework and Methodology: We interviewed female engineering graduate students at a research-based university in Canada. We employed the Gender@Work Framework (GWF) to explore the factors affecting women’s pursuit of graduate degrees. Findings: The findings underscore the complex landscape female graduate students navigate in engineering, encompassing knowledge and awareness, access to resources and opportunities, institutional policies and regulations, and cultural norms and deep structures dimensions. Conclusion: This study offers valuable insights into the various factors influencing participants’ decision to pursue graduate studies in engineering, which varied across their intersectional demographic and education backgrounds. These factors can inform the development and implementation of policies and practices, responsive to the different needs of students.