After attending the Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics at Wesleyan University in January of 2016, Jordan wanted to share the encouraging advice she received from the students she met there. A female Yale student reached out to her and offered to help with the PA YWiP Conference. She and other Yale students collected their thoughts on various topics concerning gender issues at the undergraduate level and why they love physics. Jordan compiled this advice here in order to share this insight with other high school females interested in physics.
What inspired you to study physics (or related field)?
I was always an incredibly curious girl, and grew up asking all kinds of questions. I wanted to know why light made the shape that did, how electricity worked, what was beyond as far as I could see when I looked up at the sky at night. Then, when I was a junior in high school, I learned there was a name for everything I’d ever wanted to know about: physics. I was hooked from then on.
- Aleena G, Yale Class of 2016 (Physics)
When I was in high school, I participated in a lot of Olympiads. One day, a teacher introduced me to one particular competition that required more than just taking an exam, the International Young Physicists’ Tournament (IYPT). IYPT was more than just solving problems with pre-determined solutions; it required thinking of your own explanations for different phenomena, performing your own experiments, as well as presenting and debating about your solutions in a compelling manner. I loved spending my nights thinking of different solutions and my afternoons doing the experiments. From that moment on, I was hooked into it and I couldn’t abandon physics anymore.
- Barbara S, Yale Class of 2017 (Physics)
What probably inspired most everyone reading this – an acute awareness of the beauty of the natural world surrounding us growing up. An thirst to understand why everything is the way it is. Philosophical musings. A persistence in mathematics. A role model here or there–not necessarily in physics or STEM–that believed in our potential. All of it.
- Grace P, Yale Class of 2017 (Physics/Condensed-Matter)
Have you ever felt that your gender led you to be treated differently in an academic environment? Was there ever a time when you did not feel accepted and valued? (If you feel comfortable, you may share any positive or negative experiences here.)
There were times in high school when I felt that only the boys in the class could be considered an authority on physics, although the best students in the class were clearly girls. In college I haven’t really felt that I’ve been treated differently or unvalued, however I do feel as though there’s an expectation for me to act differently (which I try my best to always defy). Women in physics here seem to need to act less sure of themselves and often start their questions with apologies (I did a personal study on this and found that women in my physics classes started their questions with “sorry” significantly more than men). In professional talks etc. I find that women also ask fewer questions. This isn’t necessarily the fault of the institution, but it seems like it’s time for a cultural shift. Perhaps it would be easier if there were more female professors here.
- Aleena G, Yale Class of 2016 (Physics)
Yes. I didn’t notice it in high school, because my peers were mostly respectful towards me and all my classes were split 50/50 between boys and girls (since I followed the Brazilian standardized curriculum and physics is a requirement for everyone). When I came to college, however, the gender ratio in my physics and math classes were shocking to me and I felt very intimidated and isolated when it came to studying in study groups as a freshman.
- Barbara S, Yale Class of 2017 (Physics)
Explicitly related to gender, not so much, surprisingly. Personally, I believe it’s because I’m headstrong and tend to attribute any disparaging experiences toward my ability and selfhood as opposed to my gender or race. (Which I know is not always true, but doing so also motivates me to get better personally.)
- Grace P, Yale Class of 2017 (Physics/Condensed-matter)
How did you deal with or react to your experience or situation (above)?
I try to act as confidently as I can. I ask all questions that I need to and am cognizant not to begin them with apologies. I hope that my confidence is contagious.
- Aleena G, Yale Class of 2016 (Physics)
Initially, we formed a study group with all of the women in our intro physics class in my second semester freshman year, after a dinner we had with Professor Meg Urry. As the semesters went by, we started inviting some of the guys to our study sessions and, in the end, we realized that we could work with most people in our classes, because everyone was struggling equally and people were more willing to admit it as sophomores and juniors than they were as first-years. Joining the Yale Women in Physics group also helped a lot, because it assisted me in creating my own support group with people I can go to when things get tough in physics.
- Barbara S, Yale Class of 2017 (Physics)
Do you have any advice for high school students interested in physics?
Don’t let the masculine culture and language of physics get you down! And don’t think it’s necessary to act like men do to be accepted into the field. Bring your womanly nature to the table; science needs it. It can be rough, but your paving the way for equality in the sciences, and I think that is of the utmost importance.
- Aleena G, Yale Class of 2016 (Physics)
Just do it! Physics is amazing and you shouldn’t let people tell you that you can’t do it. To be very honest, in my opinions that are only three things that are essential to do physics: 1) liking physics, 2) hard work and 3) persevering.
- Barbara S, Yale Class of 2017 (Physics)
Don’t let anyone insinuate to you that you’re not good enough. At the same time, get your feet wet studying physics before you commit to it. Find some good mentors – they don’t have to be in physics! It’s often that English teacher who believes in your potential and wants to know how your mind works. Share your passion with anyone who will encourage it, and you’ll find yourself empowered to anything including physics.
- Grace P, Yale Class of 2017 (Physics/Condensed-matter)