“I can do this”: Resilience of women students in engineering and technology courses in Portugal

To understand the factors that influenced female students to choose their degree programs and complete them successfully, we gathered data from 11 women undergraduate students in Chemical Engineering, Biotechnology, and Construction Management programs at a Portuguese polytechnic. All participants completed their courses within the two years following the interviews. The two authors analyzed the data gathered via interviews with individual students using thematic analysis and present four generated themes along with their implications.
The findings suggest that further research is warranted on the role of short-cycle programs within the Portuguese polytechnic sector in providing routes to help young women overcome obstacles and be successful on STEM degree programs. In a broader context, they also suggest that outreach initiatives geared towards schoolgirls and their families could benefit from emphasizing how STEM degrees can provide a wide range of career options and are a good alternative for those still unsure what future career to pursue.