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The need for civil engineers is growing rapidly. Highly complex, global problems require a diverse pool of engineers with a variety of skills, views, and leadership styles. Although the job market for civil engineers is predicted to grow substantially over the next decade, women currently comprise a small percentage of the civil engineering workforce and the percentage of women graduating from undergraduate civil engineering programs across the US has stagnated. In this paper, recent data are presented to provide a current, overall picture of the national presence of women in civil engineering. The data showed that, overall, ASCE membership is reflective of the national percentages of women in B.S. civil engineering (CE) programs and in CE practice. However, ASCE senior membership, including the rank of Fellow, has very few women and is not reflective of the percentage of women in the society. Recommendations are provided for the role of ASCE as a champion in the effort to increase the percentage and standing of women in ASCE and, thereby, in the CE profession. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Females have become less of a rarity in civil engineering faculty over the past twenty years, but the numbers remain relatively low. This article presents a brief history of females in the profession and discusses some of the issues affecting them, particularly those in academia. The objective is to examine the state of gender distribution in civil engineering academia and perceptions of personal and professional issues. In order to accomplish this, a survey was composed and distributed to female faculty from universities listed by ASCE as having accredited civil engineering programs. These data include demographics, status of mentoring, views on job satisfaction, and feelings of inclusion in a male-dominated arena. As females advance in academia, it is theorized that the numbers of female students will also increase, thus strengthening the engineering profession. This paper is a summary of the first part of the survey. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To overcome a construction labor shortage, the Singapore construction industry employs migrant workers from other countries. The cultural differences between local project managers and foreign workers may give rise to communication problems and mismanagement, leading to low productivity. This study identified the similarities and differences in cultural traits among migrant workers from China, India, and Thailand and recommended strategies to manage diversity among migrant construction workers. The research method was a survey, and data were collected from project managers who had experience in managing migrant construction workers in Singapore. In-depth interviews were also conducted to gain insights into how diversity among migrant workers could be managed. The results show that workers from Thailand tend to exhibit the least negative traits. Workers from China have traits that are significantly different from Indian and Thai workers. The recommended management strategies to deal with cultural diversity are: engage highly skilled migrant workers; administer employment contracts closely; supervise strictly to lessen poor and passive-aggressive attitudes; reward workers who take initiative; and train workers to work safely and produce high quality workmanship. In addition to work-related strategies, project managers should also form concrete personal relationships with workers to create trust and organize social activities to engender interteam spirit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Skill shortages exist in the construction industry in Australia, as they do in most industrialized countries around the world. These shortages are predicted to worsen with an aging population, and with concerns that young people are not attracted to construction. Initial career choices are made during secondary school, after exploring a broad range of options. Career counselors facilitate resource gathering about areas of interest and need to provide accurate information about the many opportunities available. Therefore, perceptions of the working conditions and individual characteristics suitable for blue collar and white collar construction roles were gathered from 202 career counselors. Overall, their knowledge of the industry was reasonably accurate and realistic. However, there were some inconsistencies in responses about work conditions, safety, job security, work hours, and having a good work ethic. Construction was also considered a better career option for males than females. Reasons why young people may not be pursuing construction careers are discussed, including the industry's traditional career path being out of step with current expectations of flexible work arrangements, portable skill sets, work-life balance, and a male dominated work culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite tremendous advances by women in the natural and applied sciences, where in selective fields women have surpassed men in the earning of doctoral degrees for more nearly 20 years, female enrollment levels in engineering continue to be a fraction of male enrollment. Gender disparities of more than 60% persist in undergraduate engineering enrollments and have recently worsened. As American female civil engineering enrollment has been flat for over 25 years, efforts must be taken to understand this stasis. This paper focuses primarily on secondary education preparation in terms of both attitudes toward and enrollment levels in preengineering courses such as calculus, chemistry, and physics. Additional consideration is given to enrollment and achievement in advanced placement courses, as reflected in national examination rates. This paper concludes that secondary school participation and achievement in physics courses is a critical differential factor as one explanatory element of female engineering enrollment levels and provides specific recommendations as to how to increase interest, enrollment, and achievement in physics, including the segregation of entry-level engineering courses based on previous experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]