To help women at UCSB deal with the often competing demands of the so-called "biological clock" and the "tenure clock," as well as with a host of other issues related to the challenges and pressures of completing university degrees and entering academia, a group of UCSB professional women has established a campus organization known as Women in Science and Engineering, or WiSE. Founded in the spring of 2001 by a group of graduate students, WiSE creates a sense of community for graduate and undergraduate women in the sciences and engineering, as well as their colleagues in faculty, research, and staff.

Sophie Parker, a Ph.D. candidate in Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology (EEMB) and member of the WiSE Board of Directors, describes WiSE as "a network of women scientists and engineers in the Santa Barbara area that fosters a safe environment for women to discuss their careers, and provides an outlet for them to address the challenges they encounter as they conduct their research, complete their degrees, and pursue their careers."

The fields represented by WiSE members range from chemical engineering to computer science, ecology to electrical engineering, geology to geography, mathematics to marine science, and physics to psychology. Although its approximately 350 members are comprised primarily of female UCSB graduate and undergraduate students, researchers, and faculty, WiSE encourages the participation of all people in the Santa Barbara area and beyond - female and male alike - who support the advancement of women in science, mathematics, and engineering. "Many men here at UCSB are sensitive to the challenges and difficulties women face in the sciences and especially in engineering where women are a significant minority. They know it's not easy and they try to help through our mentoring program as well as by fostering a positive atmosphere," said Justine Kimball, a junior undergraduate in Creative Studies and member of the WiSE Board of Directors.

A non-profit association sponsored by the Dean of Mathematical, Life & Physical Sciences, Sigma Xi, and the Student-Initiated Outreach Program, WiSE recognizes the achievements and promotes the advancement of women and girls in science and engineering careers, especially within higher education. While a variety of other groups offer programs in science and engineering to girls in elementary and high schools, WiSE has chosen to tackle the specific problem of attrition as women advance through scientific or engineering careers.

Recent national data show that women earn approximately 50 percent of all science and engineering bachelor's degrees. Nationwide, women earn only 39 percent of all science and engineering doctoral degrees, however, and constitute just under 25 percent of faculty members (10 or more years) employed in the sciences at research universities and four-year colleges. The percentage of women faculty members (10 or more years) employed in engineering at research universities and four-year colleges is less than five percent. (For further information, see statistics available from the Association for Women in Science and from the National Opinion Research Center.

Many women believe that better guidance, in the form of career advising, graduate school information, and realistic portrayals of the choices that women must make in scientific careers (e.g., balancing family and a demanding career), would make a difference in their decisions about advancing in science. In response, WiSE has established a mentoring program for undergraduate students that provides timely information about what life is like in graduate school and what the job market has to offer. Earlier this academic year, the mentoring program hosted successful workshops on "How to Apply to Graduate School in Science or Engineering," and "How to Get an Internship in Science and Engineering." WiSE also sponsors a discussion series with accomplished visiting female professors and researchers. These sessions generally focus on the speakers' life experiences in the academic world, career paths, personal and professional choices, and decisions about starting a family while maintaining a career.

During the 2003-04 academic year, WiSE co-sponsored with the National Science Foundation's ADVANCE program two workshops entitled "The Next Step." These workshops, organized by Dr. Gretchen E. Hofmann, Assistant Professor of EEMB, and Dr. Allison Whitmer, researcher and Director of Education and Outreach for the Marine Science Institute, were specifically designed to help women graduate students and postdoctoral researchers take the next step in their academic careers - finding a professorship (the focus of the first workshop) or a non-academic job (the focus of the second workshop). As Dr. Tessa Hill, who earned a doctoral degree from UCSB and who is a founding member of WiSE, explained: "Since the transition from doctoral degree to faculty position is a key place where women 'leak' from the academic pipeline, the workshop focused on the nuts and bolts of applying for and acquiring a faculty position, and also on issues that might particularly affect women, such as assertive negotiating tactics, work-family balance, and dual-career couples. For me, this workshop was an exciting opportunity for scientists - female and male alike - to get together and discuss practical ways to bridge the gap between a graduate degree in the natural sciences and a faculty position."

In addition to sponsoring periodic workshops, WiSE conducts ongoing activities to assist women in managing their personal and professional academic lives, such as hosting a weekly coffee hour (Wednesdays 3-4 PM in the Women's Center during Winter Quarter). Mary Jane Coombs, a graduate student in Marine Science and a member of the WiSE Board of Directors, encourages graduate students, undergraduate students and others to get involved with WiSE by accessing its web site to review up-to-date listings of job and fellowship opportunities, and to sign up through the web site to receive email messages about upcoming events.

Individuals and departments are encouraged to forward job listings to WiSE with the subject "web site" so that they may be posted on the web site.