LGBTQ Inequality in Engineering Education

Researchers over the last three decades have documented processes of gender and racial/ethnic inequality in engineering education, but little is known about other axes of difference, including the experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) persons in engineering. Despite growing interest in LGBTQ inequality generally, prior research has yet to systematically document day-to-day experiences of inequality in engineering along LGBTQ status.

In this paper, we utilize survey data of students from eight schools to sketch the landscape of LGBTQ inequality in engineering education. Specifically, we ask, do LGBTQ students experience greater marginalization than their classmates, is their engineering work more likely to be devalued, and do they experience more negative health and wellness outcomes? We hypothesize that LGBTQ students experience greater marginalization and devaluation and worse health and wellness outcomes compared to their non-LGBTQ peers.

We analyze novel survey data from 1729 undergraduate students (141 of whom identify as LGBTQ) enrolled in eight U.S. engineering programs.

We find that LGBTQ students face greater marginalization, devaluation, and health and wellness issues relative to their peers, and that these health and wellness inequalities are explained in part by LGBTQ students' experiences of marginalization and devaluation in their engineering programs. Further, there is little variation in the climate for LGBTQ students across the eight schools, suggesting that anti-LGBTQ bias may be widespread in engineering education.

We call for reflexive research on LGBTQ inequality engineering education and the institutional and cultural shifts therein needed to mitigate these processes and better support LGBTQ students.