As a woman in STEM, it really bugs me how people (especially guys) will refuse to believe you if you say that you’re not brilliant in your field/subjects. We have this norm fashioned in popular media that says when a woman pops up where she doesn’t traditionally “belong,” it’s because she had to strong-arm her way in by being better than everyone else. But that’s not typically the case. Not in the contexts where it’s being assumed.
I’m an average physics student. That’s reflected in my grades and in the depth of my understanding of the material. I’ve bombed easy tests because I didn’t study enough. I usually score exactly the median average on exams. I’m not brilliant. Really. But everyone I talk to insists that I must be. After all, I’m a woman in a man’s field, right? The only way I could secure a place among the men is by proving myself their superior.
This warped norm is responsible for dissuading a lot of women and girls from pursuing STEM. They think they aren’t smart enough for it, purely because they’re not smarter than their male classmates.