The Role of Gender and Work Experience on Career and Work Force Diversity Expectations

Graduating business students at a large public university participated in a study designed to gain insight into the effects of gender and work experience on salary expectations, career characteristics, job search methods and intensity, internship participation, expected hours required and willingness to work, and sensitivity to gender issues. The study reveals that students with more work experience while in college place greater importance on higher compensation than students with less experience. The study finds that female students place greater importance on work life balance and cultural fit within the organization and are more aware of, and sensitive to, gender issues. Over the years, several state and federal laws have been enacted to ensure gender pay equity for jobs requiring equivalent skills, effort, and/or responsibility; nonetheless, a gender pay gap still exists in which women are paid less than men for comparable positions. Part of the pay difference may be due to the fact that men and women are often drawn to different fields. Careers that tend to attract a larger percentage of me