`Network support' for women

For today's female Wharton students -- the professors, stock traders and investment bankers of tomorrow -- having an opportunity to meet other female students, professionals and faculty is a crucial part of career development. And in order to help women entering business, the group Wharton Women works to network students with professionals and faculty. "We help show members that there are opportunities for women," said Wharton sophomore Alexis Decerbo, a member of Wharton Women. Every year, the group hosts various female speakers from the faculty and professional world. It also provides social opportunities for the members. Because women are a minority in the business world, the group helps show its members that women can succeed just as well as their male counterparts. "While I don't always think about gender, it is nice to see how far women can go," said Wharton Women Treasurer Ena Marwaha, a Wharton junior. Members said that Wharton seems to be supportive to the group and its mission. "I would say that everyone, especially the women faculty, has been very supportive of our organization," Wharton sophomore Lucy Chang said. Professors say they offer the group support, having gone through the same situation when they were in business school. "The additional key of having women as mentors was an important impetus for me," said Management Professor Nancy Rothbard, who had female mentors in graduate school. Because of the predominance of male faculty in Wharton, some female professors recalled instances where students were surprised to have a female professor. "I've had students in my class come up to me and say that they've never taken a class with a woman," Management Professor Steffanie Wilk said. However, while the presence or lack or female professors might not serve as a deterrent to graduate study, there might be a cursory effect. "While it wouldn't serve as a deterrent, it would be a little disheartening if I saw that there were no female faculty," Chang said. Still, students do seem to appreciate having female professors because of the unique relationship that develops. "It's nice because it is a different kind of bond," Marwaha said. "It provides opportunities for mentoring and helps provide an outside perspective," Chang added. However, some women students said the gender gap doesn't affect their perceptions of the business world. "For me personally, the reality that there aren't a lot of women doesn't really matter, because I've found male professors to be extremely open and accessible," Decerbo said.