{"id":3511,"date":"2025-02-18T15:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-02-18T21:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/wellness\/?p=3511"},"modified":"2025-02-18T14:35:12","modified_gmt":"2025-02-18T20:35:12","slug":"navigating-imposter-syndrome","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/wellness\/navigating-imposter-syndrome\/","title":{"rendered":"Navigating Imposter Syndrome\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

When I decided that I wanted to go to college to study engineering, I was met with negative and discouraging comments. \u201cYou know, engineering is full of men, are you sure that\u2019s what you want to do?\u201d \u201cGood luck being the only girl in your class.\u201d \u201cHope you love dealing with men 24\/7\u201d were statements I constantly heard. While I knew that engineering was a male-dominated profession, I did not let those statements stop me. I thought that if I believed in myself, I would be successful.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, when I got to college, I felt that I had to work twice as hard as my male peers just to get by. My abilities were doubted by professors and TAs, and I was spoken over and second-guessed by my peers. Even though I was told that \u201cthis is what engineering is like\u201d, I still felt out of place. Because I was always looked at and treated negatively, I began to internalize it. Even though I deserved my place in engineering, my peers thought otherwise.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This imposter phenomenon is a common feeling. Imposter phenomenon is a psychological experience characterized by persistent feelings of self-doubt and inadequacy, despite evidence of one’s achievement. I earned my spot in engineering, but because I did not look like my peers, I felt othered. Othering did more than impact me socially. I did not feel motivated to try as hard in my classes because I knew I would not be taken seriously, and my grades decreased significantly.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, when I began to reach out to my community of other first-year engineering students, I found out that my feelings were not isolated. Many others shared feelings similar to mine and approached my feelings with empathy. At that moment, I was thankful for the community that I had.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once I found my community, I started to notice positive changes happening: <\/p>\n\n\n\n