Audrey Murray asked Leslie Villanueva AddedTuesday, January 18, 2022 at 1:38 PM Were there any obstacles you had to overcome as a woman in stem? I am interested in this because I would like to major in stem and be a mechanical engineering but I wanna know what to expect. Related to Education, Engineering Branches, Infrastructure, Mechanical, Opportunities/Challenges for Women, Self Doubt Areas of Impact Education, Infrastructure Reset Sort By Default Leslie Villanueva , Answered Friday, May 27, 2022 at 10:09 AM My biggest obstacle has been my self confidence. Not believing that you belong and doubting your knowledge are huge obstacles to being successful as an engineer or in any career. This does not mean that you cannot make mistakes from time to time but a mistake does not mean you are not qualified to be in that space, fix that mistake, or be able to try again. Also, your worth is not tied to your work output, sometime there are circumstances that our out of your control. I had obstacles in college and in work that made me doubt my intelligence and worth. It could have beeen a hard class, difficult professor, tight deadlines, clients that are unresponsive, people who undermine your competence or just an overlooked number. These are obstacles that you may encounter within this field. Just know that you get to choose how you are going to approach each obstacle but none of these obstacles define you as a person.