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Abstract
This qualitative study examined the ways in which memorable messages, socialization as a first year engineering student, and sense of self-efficacy were present in the persistence of women undergraduates at Earnest College, a small, private Christian institution in the Midwest. This study explored the lived experiences of ten women who were pursuing engineering as their major. Bandura’s (1977, 1986) work on self-efficacy was examined alongside of Knapp, Stohl, and Reardon’s (1981) and Stohl’s (1986) work on memorable messages in the context of the participants’ stories. The research showed a need to look at memorable messages with an expanded lens to consider the current context of today’s society. Themes that emerged included what led them to Earnest College, struggle and self-doubt, the role of other women, experience with professors, use of messages, and the women themselves.