From "Engineeresses" to "Girl Engineers" to "Good Engineers": A History of Women's U.S. Engineering Education

Throughout the first half of the 20th century and into the second, women studying or working in engineering were popularly perceived as oddities at best, outcasts at worst, defying traditional gender norms. During the last half of the 20th century, activists fought to change that situation, to win acknowledgment of women's ability to become good engineers. To gain public recognition for women engineers, advocates celebrated their successes in the field. To improve the climate for women in education and employment, activists organized to call attention to problems and demanded change. To aid women directly, female engineers created systems of social, psychological, and financial mutual support. Through such strategies, conditions for female engineers changed noticeably over just a few decades, although many challenges remain.