The image of engineering among Canadian high school students

Enrolment statistics from the Canadian Council of Professional Engineers indicate a recent decline in the proportion of women enrolled in engineering programmes in Canada. Peaking at 21% in 2001, female enrolments have since dropped to 19%. Many studies have been undertaken to try to determine why so few women elect to become engineers. Many factors have been cited, including streaming out of mathematics and science courses, the perception of difficulty, a lack of exposure to positive role models, a lack of knowledge about engineering and the social status of the profession. The authors' Image of Engineering study reviewed a number of these factors, specifically students' knowledge about engineering, general views about the profession and their interest in pursuing engineering as a career. If Canadian universities hope to increase the number of women studying to become engineers, it is critical that they become aware of how the profession is perceived by students at the high school (secondary) level. This study hopes to assist by studying the knowledge, interest and perception of engineering among almost 2,500 Canadian high school students.