No Girls Allowed in Some College Majors

May 7, 2009 - 1:00 pm By Sarabeth - University of Texas
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As a female film/TV major, I’ve been noticing lately that although we’ve come a long way for women’s rights, there are still some of us who have to fight sexism on a daily basis just because of what we chose to study in college. Even though almost 60% of college students today are women, there are still many majors that are dominated by the boys.

And my major, film and television, is one of them.

I decided to major in film and TV because I want to work in that industry one day (duh). I have always dreamed of being a screenwriter, producer, or, my ultimate goal, a movie director. When I tell people I that they look at me in shock. “Are there female directors??”

Uh, thanks, dude.
OF COURSE THERE ARE!

When I’m not in the male-dominated classroom, I work (with only 2 other women) for a show on a local TV station. The rest of the staff makes jokes about women constantly, and while it’s all in good fun and I know they’re good guys, I’m getting a bit sick of it. They never listen to me or the other two girls, and we’re kind of ignored when it comes to creative content. The only time they do listen to the women on staff is when it is coming from the size 4, blonde girl I work with. And that only upsets me even more. 

I don’t want to have to slather on the makeup to get the attention of my peers, but it seems the only other way I can get it is to demand it. Of course if I do that, I’m automatically labeled the bitch. Why is it that those are the only two options for us?

I’ve come to realize that this is a problem in a lot of majors. My best friend is a female engineer and she said that in that department the man to woman ratio is 12:1. Twelve to one! Where are all the smart women? Could it be that most of them were turned away from math at a young age after being told they couldn’t do it? And is it fair that those who stuck it out have to fight with that stigma every day as their male classmates silently size them up and ignore whatever insight they can bring to the topic at hand?

The truth is that no matter how far we’ve come, many of us still have to fight to prove ourselves every day. It’s not something many people realize on college campuses, but it is definitely a problem. Is this something you’ve seen? Share your experiences below!

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27 Comments   Posted in Reality
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27 Comments on "No Girls Allowed in Some College Majors"

  1. Casey says:
    Thu, 7th May 20091:52 pm 

    I understand where you’re coming from. It sucks having to fight to be heard. But I think the reason that women are so few in those fields is because they just aren’t things that women normally want to do. I was never told that I couldn’t do math. I just have never been able to do math. But I think my sister is minoring in film and TV (maybe it’s her major and English is her minor, I’m not sure). But I’m sorry you’ve had to deal with that.

  2. Kendall says:
    Thu, 7th May 20092:29 pm 

    bechdel test anyone?

  3. Vicki says:
    Thu, 7th May 20093:05 pm 

    Law enforcement has usually been a male-dominated profession, but more and more women are slowly starting to get involved with it. Speaking as a law enforcement major, a lot of my major classes have mostly guys in them, but there are still some girls. That just means that there will be more job opportunities for us once we graduate, since more law enforcement agencies are looking to hire women rather than men.

  4. anon says:
    Thu, 7th May 20093:08 pm 

    Engineer right here!! all of my classes are 90% guys! you have to LOOK for the girls. There are 3 guys for every one girl in my entire collage, much less in engineering.

  5. Celia says:
    Thu, 7th May 20093:09 pm 

    I’m a music major, which has its fair share of women, no lie. However, my principal instrument is trombone, and I’m the only female low brass player in the entire school. It is a bit annoying to be “one of the guys” constantly, but it does have its perks from time to time.

  6. Anna says:
    Thu, 7th May 20093:25 pm 

    Hey I’m so glad you wrote about this sarabeth.

    i’m also a film major and face major sexism all the time in my major.
    I’ve been told I only got an A in a certain film class because I’m a girl.
    In one of my film classes this year I actually had to speak to the teacher because of all the sexist comments directed towards myself and the two other girls in the class. It was a pretty extreme case.
    I frequently feel that I’m not respected on the same level because of my gender.
    And my friends in other majors never believe me.

    I have no idea why girls aren’t drawn towards film and television. I think things are changing however, there are more and more girls in my major every year. And in general I think more traditionally masculine majors are becoming filled with women.
    It’ll take some time but I hope to see a lot more women working in industries that are usually dominated by men.

  7. Positively Present says:
    Thu, 7th May 20093:32 pm 

    Wonderful topic to write about! I studied gender in graduate school and I learned a lot about how far we still have to go…Glad you’re bringing this to the attention of so many readers!

  8. Positively Present says:
    Thu, 7th May 20093:33 pm 

    PS – I think a LOT of majors (other than Women’s Studies) are pretty sexist…I’m curious to see what others’ experiences have been.

    http://positivelypresent.typepad.com

  9. K says:
    Thu, 7th May 20094:09 pm 

    i took women studies class .. we may be able to do alot but we still have alot to fight for as women.. ehem equal pay!

  10. maria says:
    Thu, 7th May 20094:28 pm 

    I majored in nursing in college…and it was exactly the other way around. Nursing is seen as a female position, and that it’s too “girly” for a man to do. There’s nothing feminine about being a nurse, I can honestly say that. So this also happens to males.

  11. Jess says:
    Thu, 7th May 20094:46 pm 

    I’m doing both chemistry and computer science.. there are only a handful of chem majors so I can’t say I feel any sexism there, especially since my classes have a lot of female bio majors in them. but computer science is definitely male dominated. I have never felt any sexism and I don’t mind that the girl-guy ratio isn’t equal; I just like what I like and do the best I can.
    Hopefully the girls who are facing sexism can overcome it though :/

  12. beth says:
    Thu, 7th May 20095:31 pm 

    It’s also common in banking- Most of the Financial Specialist/Financial advisor positions are filled by males (at least in the bank I work for, which is the 2nd largest bank in the country…) Not only are the positions dominated by males, the males STILL make more money than the females, regardless of education. It is VERY frustrating.

    If my post sounds dopey I apologize, I just had surgery earlier today and I’m still doped up from the anesthesia.

  13. Winnie says:
    Thu, 7th May 20096:54 pm 

    One of my girlfriends has a full ride for school becuase she IS a Engineering Major–Sweet, Eh?

    I’m a Dietetics Major, there’s one guy in our Nutrition Classes lol

  14. ellykay says:
    Fri, 8th May 20091:48 am 

    i’m a computer science major and i am definately the only female….at our entire school in my major. I have some classes with computer engineers, but there aren’t any girls there either. We have a handful of electrical engineer girls, and a few more mechanical and civils. and i’ve heard that across the board, the percent of girls in computer science has gone down over the past 10-15 years.

  15. sauer kraut says:
    Mon, 11th May 200911:06 am 

    Keep plugging away, ladies. It’s not as if you are growing up in the 70′s.

    But for film school to be devoid of women in some majors is… something wrong there.

  16. crittle says:
    Mon, 11th May 20091:18 pm 

    I’m a residential design and building construction double major. Res design is mostly women, bc is mostly guys. My friend majored in engineering so she could find a guy to marry, which she did.

  17. Justin says:
    Wed, 13th May 20091:06 am 

    are you kidding me, us guys in engineering are always impressed whenever we see a female engineer. After spending so much time in math and science classes, our contact with girls during school are slim to nil. To talk/see girls in our classes is always refreshing.

    i definitely see how girls are intimidated in engineering classes though being in the class filled to the brim with guys. when girls get called on, they get so nervous :(

    need more female engineers!

  18. Sunday says:
    Wed, 13th May 20093:24 pm 

    My program in college had 105 people in it and only three of us were female. And three was considered a higher number than average. It wasn’t because of any sort of sexist mentality. There just isn’t alot of girls who want to do that sort of physical labour, though most of the guys believed that women were just as capable as the guys were.
    And most of them really want more chicks in their classes.

  19. Sara says:
    Thu, 14th May 20093:29 am 

    I think there’s still a stigma in society against girls being interested in math and science fields. Not because girls can’t do it but because it is largely male dominated and back in high school (where you begin to explore those things) it’s more awkward to be the only girl in class. I never had those problems in high school since I already knew the guys from AP classes and such but I know other girls thought it would be awkward. Plus I think you tend to go where you feel you’ll fit in the best.

    For me, it’s political science and international relations. The political science major is somewhat lacking in girls but international relations isn’t. Although I have noticed most of the girls in that field are looking at stuff like Amnesty International and not Secretary of State (like me).

  20. valkyrie9 says:
    Thu, 14th May 20099:17 pm 

    I’m a female music composition major, and the only undergrad female in the program. The people in our dept. don’t seem to see it as a problem – if anything, they seem to think it’s great that that women are composing and we might get a female composition professor next year – but I feel sometimes like I’m treated like a curiosity outside the department. “Wow! A female composer?” Because, while there are female composers out there, not very many and almost none that the general public would know (Beethoven? Brahms? Bach? Mozart? See…no girls!) I feel like at parties at our music school, I can see the guys lose interest in me romantically once they find out I’m a composer & not something more girly like violin.

  21. the violator says:
    Fri, 15th May 200912:07 pm 

    well, i gotta say that this title is very misleading. what is stopping more women from pursuing a tv/film career? nothing.
    obviously the majority of women are choosing to do something else. there is nothing wrong with choosing this particular career as there is nothing wrong with choosing aomething else.
    i don’t understand what the deal is.

  22. criolle johnny says:
    Sat, 16th May 20092:45 pm 

    Imagine life as a Male Middle School teacher. ANY male in a school environment (below the high school level) is treated as an intruder. Your comments at meetings are treated with tolerance at best, blatant contempt at worst.
    The curriculum is also blatantly anti-male, in ways your college class would never be allowed to demonstrate. “Take your daughter to work day” vrs a “day in hell for your sons” is only one example.

    My point is that you are seeing one side. This forum allows you to hear the other. Perhaps that’s what “violator” missed.

  23. Coco says:
    Sat, 23rd May 200911:53 pm 

    You will come out better for having put up with their crap, and will be more capable of working because of it.

    As far as engineering, women sort of get the red carpet treatment – a woman has an opinion, and it will overide any ideas the men have.

  24. BigBubba says:
    Sun, 24th May 200912:42 am 

    quit bitchin Men rule the planet. jus put on your spikes, mini skirts lip sticks and nails and keep looking good. make sure we sees some t an a to. And donts forgets me coffee wid sugar wile u at it.

  25. Doug says:
    Tue, 29th Dec 200910:34 pm 

    “no girls allowed” is absurd feminist bullshiite.

    Which should be shamed. This author is crap.

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