Physics Commons^™

Impact Of Out-Of-Class Science And Engineering Activities On Physics Identity And Career Intentions, Robynne M. Lock, Zahra Hazari, Geoff Potvin

Department of Teaching and Learning

The number of physics bachelor’s degrees that are awarded in the United States annually is small compared to most other science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields, and only about one-fifth of these degrees are awarded to women. Understanding the influence of students’ science and engineering experiences on career choices is critical in order to improve future efforts to increase the number of physics majors and the participation of women. In this work, we use a physics identity framework to examine the impact of out-of-class science and engineering activities on three identity dimensions and the relationship between these dimensions and physics …