Women in Finance: An Investigation of Factors Impacting Career Choice

Abstract

Literature indicates that firms and individuals would benefit if more women pursued, and persisted in, a career in finance. Given that, why are there consistently low numbers of women studying and working in finance? More research is needed as to the nature and causes of low female participation in the field of finance. Specifically, this paper investigated the impact female faculty members had on the enrollment of female undergraduate finance majors. A weak positive correlation between numbers of female faculty and female undergraduate enrollment in finance existed. Future research may include impact of recruiting for STEM fields prior to college.