Confronting The Unique Challenges Faced By New Female Faculty

As a first year female faculty member joining an all male faculty group, many unique challenges present themselves. These challenges include the usual of a new faculty member such as time management, balancing career and family, adjusting to a new environment, and gaining the respect of students and colleagues. However, as a minority faculty member, additional challenges include lack of role models, fitting in, and gaining the respect of male students. These challenges will be further outlined in the full paper. This paper explores ways to confront these challenges. A strong support system, both professionally and personally, is essential. This support system comes in many forms, including community and university resources. A faculty mentorship program within the university has been very valuable to junior faculty. Being a mentor to female students has also been a way to overcome these challenges. The teacher becomes the student when encouraging young women to stick with engineering, and it is a very empowering experience. In the full paper, ways to overcome the challenges discussed will be explored in greater detail.