2008 Woodie Awards
SSU male-female ratio gap grows
Laurel Smith, Staff Writer
Issue date: 3/1/06 Section: Student Life
When walking around campus, it's impossible not to notice that the number of women far exceeds the number of men. Tank tops, mini skirts and Ugg boots are everywhere. Of Sonoma State's approximately 6,600 undergraduate students, an overwhelming 63% are female. So what happened to all of the guys?
There's been a growing trend throughout the nation over the last 30 years that more women than men are entering into higher education. In the state of California, boys are barely outnumbering girls in elementary, middle, and high schools in the public system. But when it comes to getting a college education, women are in the majority. At California community colleges and state universities, 57% of students are female, which drops slightly to 54% in the University of California system.
Of the 15 million undergraduate students nationwide, 58% are female. Sonoma State is not exempt from this gender gap; there are about two female undergraduate students for every male undergraduate. Sonoma State, founded in 1960, was originally a teacher education center and is now a university known for its emphasis in liberal arts and sciences. In an article that appeared recently in the Press Democrat, SSU President Ruben Armiñana said this about the skewed ratio of women to men at the University: "This is a free market. People make a free choice to come to a school. You don't force those things."
So what do SSU students have to say about this estrogen overload? It's evident when viewing the ever-popular website, Facebook. One student started a group called, "Girls Who are Over the 7:3 Ratio of Girls to Guys." And if it wasn't obvious, this group, which claims 178 members, is for girls who say: "We're so over the damn ratio! Send more boys!" Other students only feel the lack of testosterone part of the time. "I'm not really affected by the ratio all too much in the academic setting," said Quinn Morrison, junior. And depending on which class you walk into, there may not be a higher number of women. "Some classes represent this statistic correctly, but not all of them conform to that ratio. My math class is mostly guys," said senior Adam Clark. But when it comes to life outside of academia, Morrison says, "I must admit when it comes to the social scene, like parties off campus, I feel like there is a stronger feeling of competition between females to gain the attraction of guys."
Some students take a unique perspective, steering away from thinking that the current ratio is a 'good' or 'bad' thing. "I think that the ratio is another funny little quirk about Sonoma State. Our school is so different in many ways from other schools… you can look at them as negative things or just as ways that we are different," said Elizabeth Allen, sophomore. "I like to lean towards the side of being different. And I bet the men on our campus don't think it is the most horrible thing in the world!" Clark agrees. "As a male, it is really nice to walk around campus and see 63% of the students be female. You talk to new girls every day!" said Clark. "I am not going to lie, it's one of the reasons I chose Sonoma State in the first place."
There's been a growing trend throughout the nation over the last 30 years that more women than men are entering into higher education. In the state of California, boys are barely outnumbering girls in elementary, middle, and high schools in the public system. But when it comes to getting a college education, women are in the majority. At California community colleges and state universities, 57% of students are female, which drops slightly to 54% in the University of California system.
Of the 15 million undergraduate students nationwide, 58% are female. Sonoma State is not exempt from this gender gap; there are about two female undergraduate students for every male undergraduate. Sonoma State, founded in 1960, was originally a teacher education center and is now a university known for its emphasis in liberal arts and sciences. In an article that appeared recently in the Press Democrat, SSU President Ruben Armiñana said this about the skewed ratio of women to men at the University: "This is a free market. People make a free choice to come to a school. You don't force those things."
So what do SSU students have to say about this estrogen overload? It's evident when viewing the ever-popular website, Facebook. One student started a group called, "Girls Who are Over the 7:3 Ratio of Girls to Guys." And if it wasn't obvious, this group, which claims 178 members, is for girls who say: "We're so over the damn ratio! Send more boys!" Other students only feel the lack of testosterone part of the time. "I'm not really affected by the ratio all too much in the academic setting," said Quinn Morrison, junior. And depending on which class you walk into, there may not be a higher number of women. "Some classes represent this statistic correctly, but not all of them conform to that ratio. My math class is mostly guys," said senior Adam Clark. But when it comes to life outside of academia, Morrison says, "I must admit when it comes to the social scene, like parties off campus, I feel like there is a stronger feeling of competition between females to gain the attraction of guys."
Some students take a unique perspective, steering away from thinking that the current ratio is a 'good' or 'bad' thing. "I think that the ratio is another funny little quirk about Sonoma State. Our school is so different in many ways from other schools… you can look at them as negative things or just as ways that we are different," said Elizabeth Allen, sophomore. "I like to lean towards the side of being different. And I bet the men on our campus don't think it is the most horrible thing in the world!" Clark agrees. "As a male, it is really nice to walk around campus and see 63% of the students be female. You talk to new girls every day!" said Clark. "I am not going to lie, it's one of the reasons I chose Sonoma State in the first place."