Gender Discrimination in the Workplace Starts In College

Difference in Style Choices

When walking around Furman’s campus, it is not uncommon to see people dressed casually. The walk to academic buildings and early morning classes can often urge people to dress for comfort rather than style. Even so, however, there is often a discrepancy between what men and women consider to be their “comfy clothes''.” It would not be anything out of the blue to see male students walking around in their pajama pants from the night before, while female students may tend to put more effort into their daily appearance. Not only have I seen this pan out constantly in front of my own eyes, I have also done extensive research on how this difference has been set in place by societal standards, and can even lead to inequality in a professional setting later in life.

Insight From a Gender Studies Major

To have a better understanding of the topic, I spoke with Furman University Gender Studies major, May Barwick, about her experience with this and her overall reasoning behind wanting to further explore gender discrepancies in our society. She said, “I knew I wanted to become a Gender Studies major after I took a class about it in high school. After this class, I began to notice all of the ways in which gender inequalities are still very much present in our society, appearance expectations being very prevalent.” More specifically speaking, I asked how she sees appearance discrepancies play out on campus. “I think even in an out of class situation, there is a lot of pressure on women to always look pristine and put together- even in situations where that is not necessary or expected of men. Around Furman, I have noticed that it is more likely for a woman to be dressed up or in "elevated" clothing, even in coordinated high end athleisure, than for a man to be.”

Insight From an Average Student

To get a feel of whether or not other females in college have felt the prevalence of this discrepancy I consulted someone who is not a Gender Studies major. I asked my friend Lydia Beachum if she had ever been in class and noticed a difference between the general attire worn by men and women, especially on presentation days. “I have noticed that while jeans are frowned upon for women to wear in a professional setting, that is often what men wear on presentation days or when told to dress nicely. Additionally, I can see women are judged based on appearances much more quickly than men are, as it is expected that we put more effort into our appearances on the regular.”

Pressure on Women

While some of this may be explained by personal preference and what someone feels comfortable with, research suggests that this difference is largely influenced by cultural and societal standards. In the Pew Research Center article “Americans See Different Expectations for Men and Women”, author Kim Parker makes it clear that society has clear values set for both men and women. “While many say that society values honesty, morality and professional success in men, the top qualities for women are physical attractiveness and being nurturing and empathetic.” This goes along with what I and others have noticed about appearances of men and women on college campuses.

Outfit Comparison

To prove this theory, I put together an outfit I would consider to be appropriate for a presentation day and asked a male friend to show me what he thought would be a good outfit to wear to a presentation as well. As depicted below, he chose a pair of jeans and a button up shirt, while I typically would go for a dress.

The results…

Inequality Still in Place

In conclusion, there are many ways that gender stereotypes are still very much prevalent in today’s society. The extreme appearance expectations for women start with how students dress for class. While changes to work towards gender equality have been made, aspects like this in society can contribute to the lingering discrepancy.