The Intersectional Experiences of Women of Colour in Undergraduate Engineering

Our students’ lived experiences shape their learning journey, but existing literature gives little insight into the challenges that women of colour in engineering face in Canada. We used reflexive thematic analysis to understand recurring themes from focus group conversations with 26 women of colour at a medium-sized, research-intensive university. We show women of colour who are pursuing engineering have undergraduate experiences that are affected by identity, academics, family and peer relationships. The generic multiple worlds theoretical construct helped explain the tension between worlds. Students adapted to new academic challenges with imposter syndrome, leadership frustration and high standards. Oftentimes, support from immigrant parents translates into expectations, adding pressure, while finding peers who shared similar identities and offered genuine support proved to be a challenge. Sometimes, academic settings and peers prevented women of colour from feeling included in engineering. Institutions should create nurturing environments for women of colour and actively engaging parents.