Taking the Bull by the Horns: Exploring the Experiences of Successful STEM Women in Ghana

• In Event: Poster Session 8
  In Poster Session: Women, Gender Gaps, and Education

Abstract

Gender disparities are rife in Ghana and its educational sector. Despite the plethora of literatures on gender disparities in Ghana’s education system, there is scanty coverage on gender disparities in the STEM fields. The paper’s purpose is to examine the experiences of successful STEM women in Ghana utilizing semi-structured interviews. Although they faced gender discrimination, their socialization emanated from their parents and other family members who are STEM professionals. All of them went to girls’ schools. Their agency made them linchpins in their study groups, exceled in their studies, and they were assisted to progress on their STEM trajectories by their professors and other mentors. As faculty, their professional productivity soared and they have been psychologically empowering their protégés.

Author

• Fred Kofi Boateng, University of Ghana