I'm in college studying electrical engineering. I have just joined the LGBT community and I'm wondering about the engineering workforce. Is there an LGBTQ+ engineering group? Is there any LGBT discrimination that I should know about before joining the engineering workforce? What companies are good to work for as an LGBT person? Also, should I hide my sexual orientation from my professors? I won't ever loudly broadcast it - I'm a very quiet person - but if they find out, is that okay?
There is no need to hide your sexuality from your professors. They are educated people, I highly doubt they care about your sexuality unless they are extremely religious. It's totally OK if they find out you're an LGBT person, because it has no relevance to their personal lives. Academia is probably the last place you'll encounter discrimination. The companies that are good to work for as an LGBT person are the ones that specifically state they do no discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation. Truth be told, as an LGBT person you will probably encounter some form of discrimination in any industry or workforce. But that shouldn't stop you from following your interests and dreams. Electrical engineering sounds really cool, it will serve you well.
I a lot of my LGBT friends are actually engineers and working in the field. They have not complained about any discrimination and they say that in their companies there are many openly LGBT persons. In my opinion there you should have no reason to hide your orientation but certainly there is no reason to print it on your business card either if you know what I say.
