The Other Gender: An Examination of African American Female Students’ Career Aspirations

Abiola A. Farinde 
(University of North Carolina at Charlotte, USA)

Abstract: When compared to their White counterparts, African American women are often underrepresented in positions of power, authority, and influence (e.g., doctors, mathematicians, engineers, chemists, government officials, professors, lawyers, etc.), filling a small percentage of high-profile staff positions. From a social-cognitive career theory lens, the literature suggests that many environmental factors and conditions may influence African American female students’ career aspirations. In this article, it is posited that environmental factors such as racial and gender induced societal ideologies and constructs, role models, a networking structure and foundation, and school and family variables may influence the career aspirations of these young girls, contributing to the disproportionate number of African American women in high-level often male-dominated professions.

Key words: African American female students, career aspirations, social-cognitive career theory