Supporting Girls in Physics

Girls are under-represented in A level physics, making up just 22.2% of entrants in 2018. To explore ways to support these girls, we surveyed girls studying A level physics to understand which, if any, of our proposals would have their backing. The survey was designed and data analysed by Dr Kathryn Boast, STEM Outreach Officer. You can download the full report using the red button link.

The survey

The survey assessed the opinions of girls studying A level physics (or equivalent) on potential interventions to support them in their studies. These included:

• an online forum for girls to post questions and suggest answers
• a social network for girls studying physics
• a “step-up” network where girls could post questions and chat to other, more senior women in physics
• a conference for girls in physics, similar to the Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics, which runs annually.

The survey also asked about their feeling of “belonging”, and collected some demographic data on the environment in which they are studying physics. The online survey was shared through social media and mailing lists. It received 259 submissions, of which 255 contained responses (four were blank). The survey was open in October – December 2018. Around 16,000 girls are taking A level physics in the UK, so this data is from approximately 1.5% of that population.

The conclusions

One third of these girls studying physics sometimes feel like they don’t belong, but almost half disagree with this suggestion. There is a correlation between girls’ feeling of belonging and the proportion of their class that is girls – the smaller the proportion, the more likely they are to say they feel like they don’t belong. However, those who sometimes feel like they don’t belong are more likely to say they intend to study physics at university; perhaps these students who are studying despite a feeling of not belonging are the intrinsically most motivated. There is general support for a forum where girls studying A level physics could post questions and suggest answers among peers nationwide, with only 11% disagreeing with this statement, and more than 60% agreeing. However, there is not substantial support for a “social network”. A “step-up network” which facilitates interactions between students and more advanced STEM professionals was the most strongly supported proposal. More than 75% agreed or strongly agreed that they would appreciate this, while only 7% said they disagreed or strongly disagreed. A conference for girls in physics was similarly supported, with 73% in favour of and 8% against the idea.