UC Merced Undergraduate Research Journal

The sciences have greatly remained dominated by men, regardless of the many attempts and initiatives to end the gender and racial inequalities. Women and people of color have remained underrepresented throughout society and academia. In this study, interviews were conducted in order to observe and collect similar experiences within participants’ responses about their writing, research, and the exclusion of underrepresented groups in science such as women and people of color. The main focus of this study was on gender inequality, racial bias, and discrimination placed upon the scholarly, peer review process as it is the base of scientific publishing. The results collected were to provide solutions to these ongoing issues in order to create a more diverse and inclusive environment within academic institutions, workplaces, and science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. The purpose of doing so will shed a light on the barrier gaps in STEM related fields.