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Global Academic Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences
Volume-5 | Issue- 03
Original Research Article
Enrollment Trends, Motivations, and Future Aspirations of Female Undergraduate Students in STEM Courses at Federal University Gusau - Nigeria
Akilu Isma’il, Murtala Abbas, Aminu Ibrahim
Published : May 6, 2023
DOI : 10.36348/gajhss.2023.v05i03.001
Abstract
This study aimed to investigate the enrollment trends, motivations, and future aspirations of female undergraduate students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) courses at the Federal University Gusau in Nigeria. A survey design was employed, and a 36-item questionnaire was used to collect data from a sample of 350 female undergraduate students studying STEM courses at the university. The questionnaire had three sections focusing on demographic information, motivations and future career aspirations of the respondents in STEM fields. The questionnaire was validated and reliability coefficient of 0.72 was obtained using Cronbach alpha. The data collected were analyzed using mean and standard deviation. The results showed that female students' overall enrollment in STEM courses was relatively low. However, there were variations across disciplines, with some courses having as high as 50.70% (Biotechnology) and 49.43% (Microbiology), and as low as 8.36% (Physics), 9.06% (Geology) and 11.06% (Mathematics) of female enrollment. The overall enrollment rose from 23% in the 2014/2015 academic year to 31.4% in the 2019/2020. The study also found that personal interest, background knowledge, and academic success in STEM-related subjects were the key motivators for females to pursue STEM courses. On the other hand, lack of family and community support, lack of confidence in problem-solving, and the need for role models and mentors were significant barriers. It is recommended among others that, universities and policymakers provide more resources and support to female students in STEM fields, such as mentorship programmes, scholarships, and initiatives to promote gender equity.

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