The Future of Women in Aviation: Trends in Participation in Postsecondary Aviation Education

The purpose of this research was to evaluate the trends in participation by women in postsecondary aviation programs in the United States both at the student and faculty levels. Data concerning the number of students who completed baccalaureate degrees in aviation was collected via the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS). It was found that 560 (10.5%) students among the 5,355 total that completed a degree in an aviation related field in 2007 were female. Also, of 434 full-time aviation faculty members employed at 74 different aviation programs meeting the criteria of this study, 35 (8.1%) were found to be female. 84 faculty were identified in an academic leadership positions and of these individuals, 10 (1 1.9%) were women. These participation rates were found to be higher than those found among the aircraft pilot population and in the aviation industry in general. The level of involvement of women in aviation higher education in recent years has shown no significant improvement among students, however, there has been a small increase among faculty in comparison to the findings of four out of five previous studies