Decade of Excellence: Utah State's Successful Women in Physics
Einstein, eat your heart out; women at Utah State University are proving that physics is no longer just a man’s world.
USU boasts an unusual wealth of women physics students who have been successful in their academic endeavors. These scholars have accumulated quite the repertoire of accolades in the last decade, including four Goldwater Scholars, a Rhodes Scholar and a Fulbright Student Scholar. This, however, is only the beginning; add to the list a Marshall Scholar, a group of USU Undergraduate Research Fellows, a USU Undergraduate Researcher of the Year and numerous research presentation awards.
USU boasts an unusual wealth of women physics students who have been successful in their academic endeavors. These scholars have accumulated quite the repertoire of accolades in the last decade, including four Goldwater Scholars, a Rhodes Scholar and a Fulbright Student Scholar. This, however, is only the beginning; add to the list a Marshall Scholar, a group of USU Undergraduate Research Fellows, a USU Undergraduate Researcher of the Year and numerous research presentation awards.
Bottom line — USU has some outstanding physicists — many of whom happen to be women.
Such recognition of women scholars hasn’t always been the norm. In fact, physics has traditionally been a predominantly male science. From 1950-1970, a mere five percent of U.S. doctoral degrees in physics were awarded to women.
The times, however, are changing. Women are entering the field of physics at an increasing rate and what’s more, they are just as successful as their male counterparts at scaling the academic ladder.
Take, for example, Jan Marie Andersen, recent USU graduate and Fulbright U.S. Student Scholarship recipient. She is currently representing the United States at the University of Copenhagen’s renowned Niels Bohr Institute, where she is studying astrophysics. Andersen also completed a NASA summer internship at California’s Ames Research Center and was named 2007’s Undergraduate Researcher of the Year for the USU College of Science.
Such recognition of women scholars hasn’t always been the norm. In fact, physics has traditionally been a predominantly male science. From 1950-1970, a mere five percent of U.S. doctoral degrees in physics were awarded to women.
The times, however, are changing. Women are entering the field of physics at an increasing rate and what’s more, they are just as successful as their male counterparts at scaling the academic ladder.
Take, for example, Jan Marie Andersen, recent USU graduate and Fulbright U.S. Student Scholarship recipient. She is currently representing the United States at the University of Copenhagen’s renowned Niels Bohr Institute, where she is studying astrophysics. Andersen also completed a NASA summer internship at California’s Ames Research Center and was named 2007’s Undergraduate Researcher of the Year for the USU College of Science.
Another portrait of success can be found in USU alum Lara Anderson. After receiving her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in math and physics from Utah State, she traveled to Oxford University to earn her doctorate. During her four years at USU, she was named a Rhodes Scholar, a Marshall Scholar, a Goldwater Scholar, an NSF Graduate Fellow and USU’s valedictorian.
“I do love physics,” said Anderson. “The time I spend on physics and mathematics is some of the happiest that I experience.”
“The prestigious national and international fellowships earned by USU students are a mark of distinction that recipients will carry with them a lifetime,” said Joyce Kinkead, associate vice president for research at Utah State. “To be ‘elected’ as one of 32 Rhodes Scholars from the United States is probably the pinnacle of success. Awards such as the Goldwater, Truman, Marshall or Rhodes mark a person as having an exemplary academic track record and signal, ‘Here is a person who may change the world.’”
Women in physics have not always had such opportunities for recognition. Far too often, women’s achievements are mentioned without the women themselves being credited. The works of Emmy Noether, Inge Lehmann, Henrietta Leavitt and Lisa Meitner, for example, have profoundly reshaped our understanding of the physical universe, but their names rarely appear in standard textbooks.
In addition to this lack of acknowledgment, women in the sciences have also had to deal with a tremendous lack of support. In a survey taken by the American Institute of Physics, the majority of women in physics said negative interaction with colleagues and discriminatory attitudes had discouraged them from further pursuing their careers.
With all of these obstacles facing women in physics, what is it that has allowed women of Utah State’s physics program to flourish?
According to Jennifer Albretsen, 2007 Goldwater Scholar, National Merit Scholar, Utah Governor’s Scholar and USU Undergraduate Research Fellow, it’s all about the individualized help the USU Physics Department has to offer.
“The Physics Department at Utah State has supported me from my first day on campus,” said Albretsen. “They take the time to help all students excel, both men and women. Faculty and staff take my education just as seriously as any other student’s.”
“It’s not the gender that discourages women from physics — it’s whether they have the individual help,” said Jerilyn Brunson, ASUSU vice president of graduate studies and Rocky Mountain Space Grant graduate fellow. “In Physics at USU, women get opportunities and individualized attention. Finding that individual who takes an interest makes all the difference.”
Fellow students are also vital to survival in the physics world. The Society of Physics Students provides another support structure for women in the field. The USU chapter was revived in 2005 by undergraduate Jodie Tvedtnes, a Presidential Transfer Scholarship recipient who received the National Center for Atmospheric Research Undergraduate Leadership award and an honorable mention from the Goldwater Scholar foundation.
“The Society of Physics Students is a great resource for physics majors,” said Albretsen. “It provides opportunities for students to network with each other and with faculty, to learn about current physics research, to prepare and present science demonstrations and to achieve academic honors.”
In addition to the support structure, USU’s Physics Department and its faculty place an enormous emphasis on undergraduate research. The department offers numerous opportunities for women to plunge into hands-on research, an integral component for success in physics.
“All of these women have participated in research,” said Jan Sojka, head of the USU Physics Department. “The opportunity — the medium — is here for them. Undergraduate research is a huge part of this program.”
“Classes are essential, but what makes science science is the thought process that goes with testing a hypothesis,” said J.R. Dennison, physics professor and Albretsen’s mentor. “There’s no substitute for getting in the lab and making a lot of mistakes.”
“A big draw is the hands-on experiments; they eat it up!” said David Peak, physics professor and undergraduate research mentor. “All of these women have participated in research not only in physics, but in other disciplines as well.
While Andersen, Anderson, Albretsen, Brunson and Tvedtnes continue to impact the physics world with their research, many more USU students are breaking boundaries right along with them. To see a further list of USU’s successful women in physics, visit the USU Physics Department Web page.
Contact: Jan Sojka [fasojka@sojka.cass.usu.edu], 435-797-2964
Writer: Amy Sullivan
“I do love physics,” said Anderson. “The time I spend on physics and mathematics is some of the happiest that I experience.”
“The prestigious national and international fellowships earned by USU students are a mark of distinction that recipients will carry with them a lifetime,” said Joyce Kinkead, associate vice president for research at Utah State. “To be ‘elected’ as one of 32 Rhodes Scholars from the United States is probably the pinnacle of success. Awards such as the Goldwater, Truman, Marshall or Rhodes mark a person as having an exemplary academic track record and signal, ‘Here is a person who may change the world.’”
Women in physics have not always had such opportunities for recognition. Far too often, women’s achievements are mentioned without the women themselves being credited. The works of Emmy Noether, Inge Lehmann, Henrietta Leavitt and Lisa Meitner, for example, have profoundly reshaped our understanding of the physical universe, but their names rarely appear in standard textbooks.
In addition to this lack of acknowledgment, women in the sciences have also had to deal with a tremendous lack of support. In a survey taken by the American Institute of Physics, the majority of women in physics said negative interaction with colleagues and discriminatory attitudes had discouraged them from further pursuing their careers.
With all of these obstacles facing women in physics, what is it that has allowed women of Utah State’s physics program to flourish?
According to Jennifer Albretsen, 2007 Goldwater Scholar, National Merit Scholar, Utah Governor’s Scholar and USU Undergraduate Research Fellow, it’s all about the individualized help the USU Physics Department has to offer.
“The Physics Department at Utah State has supported me from my first day on campus,” said Albretsen. “They take the time to help all students excel, both men and women. Faculty and staff take my education just as seriously as any other student’s.”
“It’s not the gender that discourages women from physics — it’s whether they have the individual help,” said Jerilyn Brunson, ASUSU vice president of graduate studies and Rocky Mountain Space Grant graduate fellow. “In Physics at USU, women get opportunities and individualized attention. Finding that individual who takes an interest makes all the difference.”
Fellow students are also vital to survival in the physics world. The Society of Physics Students provides another support structure for women in the field. The USU chapter was revived in 2005 by undergraduate Jodie Tvedtnes, a Presidential Transfer Scholarship recipient who received the National Center for Atmospheric Research Undergraduate Leadership award and an honorable mention from the Goldwater Scholar foundation.
“The Society of Physics Students is a great resource for physics majors,” said Albretsen. “It provides opportunities for students to network with each other and with faculty, to learn about current physics research, to prepare and present science demonstrations and to achieve academic honors.”
In addition to the support structure, USU’s Physics Department and its faculty place an enormous emphasis on undergraduate research. The department offers numerous opportunities for women to plunge into hands-on research, an integral component for success in physics.
“All of these women have participated in research,” said Jan Sojka, head of the USU Physics Department. “The opportunity — the medium — is here for them. Undergraduate research is a huge part of this program.”
“Classes are essential, but what makes science science is the thought process that goes with testing a hypothesis,” said J.R. Dennison, physics professor and Albretsen’s mentor. “There’s no substitute for getting in the lab and making a lot of mistakes.”
“A big draw is the hands-on experiments; they eat it up!” said David Peak, physics professor and undergraduate research mentor. “All of these women have participated in research not only in physics, but in other disciplines as well.
While Andersen, Anderson, Albretsen, Brunson and Tvedtnes continue to impact the physics world with their research, many more USU students are breaking boundaries right along with them. To see a further list of USU’s successful women in physics, visit the USU Physics Department Web page.
Contact: Jan Sojka [fasojka@sojka.cass.usu.edu], 435-797-2964
Writer: Amy Sullivan
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USU alum and Rhodes Scholar Lara Anderson is completing her doctorate in physics at Oxford University and investigating postdoc opportunities.
Undergrad physicists Jodie Tvedtnes, left, and Jennifer Albretsen are excelling in research and academic pursuits.
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