As an English major at the University, I am accustomed to female-dominated classes. This summer, as a fellow in the Research Experiences for Undergraduates program, I was part of a completely different equation--an engineering equation.

My first sensation during our first trip as summer fellows was amazement. I walked into the largest gathering of professionals in the field of bridge engineering, the International Bridge Conference in Pittsburgh, and struggled to count 10 women below the age of 50. I remarked to my roommate, Jana Spiker, a civil and environmental engineering major from the University of Colorado, "Where are the women?"

She looked at me and smiled. "This is it." Then, her smile faded as she said, "There aren't many women at this level in the field, and that just makes me work harder. Sometimes, my professors will set lower expectations for me because I'm a woman, but I am determined to do as well if not better than my male classmates."

As I look back on my experience as the sole English major among a group of engineers, I think I can understand how she felt. I wrestled with two emotions during my interaction with students from around the country, because we had very different cultural backgrounds and academic strengths. On one hand, it was strange to be surrounded by students who could make mathematical equations do cartwheels around my head. On the other hand, it was exciting to have skills that were rare in our group, including a knack for grammar and a killer instinct in Scrabble.

Overall, it was a joy to witness their research from beginning to end. I learned ample background about their projects and about them. I learned what it is like to be a woman in a male-dominated field, to serve in the Navy in war-torn Bosnia, to work as a missionary in Brazil for two years and to live in the Midwest your entire life. But, most of all, I learned that I can use my UD education and my avid curiosity in science to understand anything, even the construction, inspection, maintenance and replacement of bridges. Ultimately, my background in English provided me with a framework to learn from each person and gain more knowledge by working with the other NSF-REU summer fellows than any class could have taught.

Although the equation initially appeared unbalanced, the end product can be summarized in a simple phrase: Being in the minority can be a major advantage.

--Jennifer E. Berry, AS 2003,
NSF-REU fellow