Recent data shows that female students at AU are increasingly choosing to major in math and science subject areas.
According to a report from the Office of Institutional Research and Assessment, female students at AU are taking more math and science classes in majors such as Health Promotion. This year, Health Promotion is made up of 20 percent more women compared to numbers from 2004, and the major currently is 87 percent female. Health Promotion is also third on the list of top majors with the highest percentage of female enrollment.
Despite the increase in female students, AU has not actively recruited more women to math and science programs, according to Anastasia Snelling, associate dean of the School of Education, Teaching and Health.
“Possibly, educators may be doing a better job in primary and secondary education with science and math, which increases the confidence female students may have in studying science and math at the university level,” Snelling said in an email.
Art History tops the list with the greatest percentage of women in 2004 and 2014, but the numbers dropped from 96 percent to 93 percent over those 10 years. The Foreign Language and Communication Media major comes in second at 91 percent and also shows a significant increase, rising by 12 percent from 2004.
While other majors such as Audio Technology, Statistics and Environmental Studies also show trends in increased interest from female students, Liberal Studies and the Communications, Law, Economics and Government major show negative trends, dropping 37 percent and 15 percent respectively over the past 10 years.
Data from the OIRA also says that in general, female students make up 62 percent of the AU population. At least half of each college within the University is made up of female students.
However, the OIRA also says that since 2004, the amount of female students in the College of Arts and Sciences and Kogod School of Business increased by 2 percent each. Conversely, the number of female students in the School of Communication and the School of Public Affairs decreased by 1 percent and 5 percent respectively. The proportion of School of International Service remained the same.
Pamela Goldberg, a Health Promotion major, is proud to be one of the female students at AU studying to enter a math and science related field, she said.
“As the daughter of a doctor, I was raised being encouraged to pursue any career that interests me,” Goldberg said in an email. “I am inspired by women such as my mother who have blazed the trail before me and believe it is my responsibility to continue to make careers in science accessible and exciting for women.”
