Gender-Focused Engineering Education: An Approach from the Student Perspective

Abstract

In recent years, female enrollment in engineering programs in Chile has increased due to policies and initiatives aimed at expanding access opportunities. However, challenges persist in effectively incorporating a gender perspective into pedagogical practices. To identify barriers and opportunities for promoting more equitable educational environments, this study analyzes students' perceptions regarding the integration of gender-sensitive pedagogical approaches in an engineering school at an elite Latin American university. The research adopted a qualitative approach, collecting data through two instances: a focus group with 11 students from different cohorts, selected via purposive non-probabilistic sampling, and an elicitation activity with the voluntary participation of 14 students. Thematic analysis of the recordings revealed that students perceive instructors as tending to reproduce gender stereotypes and to overlook the presence of female role models in the classroom. Likewise, students in advanced stages of their programs show greater critical sensitivity toward the absence of inclusive perspectives. The findings underscore the need to strengthen faculty training in gender equity and to promote inclusive pedagogical methodologies in both explicit and implicit curricula. Future studies will explore faculty perceptions to contrast them with student perspectives.