In recent years, the percentage of women graduating nationally with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering (BSCE) has been about 20% to 25%; however, there is a huge disparity in the percentage of women graduating from school to school. At Villanova University, the number of women graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering has been 33% over the past three years, which is above the national average. This paper seeks to explore why this department has been successful in recruiting and retaining women by analyzing the results of the incoming student survey, the senior exit survey, and focus group discussions. Three themes emerged that were particularly important to women at this university: understanding other cultures/study abroad; sense of community, which is enhanced by the significant numbers of women faculty and students; and service opportunities. The results indicate that our overall response to these themes, which forms our department's culture, as opposed to the implementation of specific women-only programs was pivotal in successfully recruiting and retaining women. The approach used to uncover these themes could be used by other departments to determine what they could do or what they are already doing that resonates with women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]