Encouraging Young African American and Hispanic Women to Choose STEM Disciplines

The persisting disparity of young African American and Hispanic women in STEM disciplines has been a long-standing issue for education leaders, policymakers, and industry leaders. One way to address this issue is to explore the best strategies for building confidence in young African American and Hispanic women and increasing their self-efficacy at the high school level to pursue STEM disciplines. Community support, role models/mentors, and hands-on experiential learning are essential parts of the support and experience these young women of color (YWOC) need to feel confident in their abilities to succeed in STEM fields. This study identified the challenges young African American and Hispanic women faced when selecting a STEM discipline and identified the best strategies to overcome these challenges. An online survey and semi-structured interviews were conducted to gather the lived experiences of young African American and Hispanic women currently enrolled in a STEM discipline or working in a STEM field. The survey results and interview results demonstrated that parents\u27 and teachers\u27 involvement and continued support are essential to building young African American and Hispanic women\u27s confidence to persist in STEM disciplines. Peer support played a significant role in developing STEM identity and self-efficacy. Additionally, hands-on experiential learning that ignites creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, and communication are also needed to persist in STEM disciplines. This study\u27s findings are significant as they provide additional insights to existing data regarding the best strategies for promoting confidence and high self-efficacy in YWOC to pursue STEM opportunities