Is Chemical Engineering a Good Major for Women

Is Chemical Engineering a Good Major for Women? from the Department of Chemical Engineering at Brigham Young University 2011

Answers to questions asked by: Women entering college (including specific questions asked by LDS women)

Many women ask: should I… • complete at least my 4 -year college degree? • pursue a technical/professional major if so inclined? • consider chemical engineering as a great option among technical majors?

Wisdom is… living in the present but investing in the future Education is a vital investment. Therefore, we propose… Education for: • Options and Opportunities • Life

Many Women Ask… What if I don’t know what the future holds? For example… I want to be a mother/homemaker at some point I may not marry I want to be prepared for economic hardship I want to make a difference – can I?

Education for… • Options and Opportunities Chemical Engineering provides professional/financial options and opportunities Don’t you wish you for… women who are married could see the future? medical bills employment instability spouse disability disasters unforeseeable expense etc. women who are single supporting self supporting a family women who want the potential for great salary (among the highest available) exciting opportunities flexibility solve important problems improve the quality of life

Many LDS Women Ask… Am I being untrue to eternal goals and prophetic counsel by pursuing a career-related major?

“In this day and time, a girl needs an education. She needs the means and skills by which to earn a living should she find herself in a situation where it becomes necessary to do so. ” Gordon B. Hinckley, “How Can I Become the Woman of Whom I Dream? ” Ensign, May 2001, 93

“I am grateful that women today are afforded the same opportunity to study for science, for the professions, and for every other facet of human knowledge. You are as entitled as are men to the Spirit of Christ, which enlightens every man and woman who comes into the world. (See D&C 84: 46) Set your priorities in terms of marriage and family, but also pursue educational programs which will lead to satisfying work and productive employment in case you do not marry, or to a sense of security and fulfillment in the event you do marry. ” Gordon B. Hinckley, General Women’s Meeting, Ensign, Nov. 1985, 86.

Because their potential for good is so great and their gifts so diverse, women may find themselves in roles that vary with their circumstances in life. Some women, in fact, must fill many roles simultaneously. For this reason, Latter-day Saint women are encouraged to acquire an education and training that will qualify them both for homemaking and raising a righteous family and for earning a living outside the home if the occasion requires. Dieter F. Uchtdorf, The Influence of Righteous Women, Ensign, Sept 2009, 2 -7.

“I would wish that all of you women might have the blessing of a happy marriage and a happy home and that you would not have to go out into the marketplace to labor for income. But I know that for some of you this may be a necessity, and you will be better equipped to do so if your hands and minds are trained. Furthermore, whether it is applied to earning a living or not, education is an investment that never ceases to pay dividends of one kind or another. ” Gordon B. Hinckley, General Woman’s Meeting, 23 September 1989.

Many Women Ask… Is my technical background wasted if I raise a family and never am employed?

Education for… • Life A technical education is valuable for a full-time mother/homemaker §Problem solving in a technical world • Dealing with doctors, mechanics, repairmen, appliances §Functioning as a responsible citizen • Social/political technical issues (energy, global warming, nuclear waste, stem cell research, etc. ) §Coaching your children & others through school • Math, chemistry, physics §Role model to your daughters and their friends §Role model to your sons and their friends

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Laura Vasquez, 2001

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Rebekah Ellsworth, 2003

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Charity Chapin, 2005

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Amanda Bristow, 2003

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Laura Otto, 2007

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Shannon Bridge, 2000

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Andrea Lundell, 2003

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Julie Hutchins, 2005

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Holly Clayton, 2007

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Nancy Vincent, 2000

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Adrienne Lung, 2003

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Tahlia Maddux, 2004

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Kalina Scherbel, 2005

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Megan Woodhouse, 2007

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Stephanie Stitt, 2003

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Leslie Pagel, 2006

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Jenna Fletcher, 2007

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Lynlee Richards, 2006

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Berlin Kowallis, 2007

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Amy Layne, 2009

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Katie Shepard, 2008

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Kortney Judd, 2009

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Carla Hedengren, 2008

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Becky Miller, 2009

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Emilee Haines, 2008

Introducing a few of our women graduates in Chemical Engineering at BYU Your Picture Could Be Here Someday! You? , Some Future Year

If You Have Interest and Skills in Chemistry, Math, Physics, Biology… Chemical Engineering Might Be A Good Major for You! We Would Be Happy to Help Your Friends in the Chemical Engineering Department at Brigham Young University