National reports widely publicized that the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic’s disruption of work–
nonwork boundaries impacted women’s careers negatively, as many exited their jobs to manage nonwork
demands. We know less about the adaptations made by highly career-invested women to remain in the
workforce in occupations where they are extremely under-represented. Based on qualitative data from 763
academic Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) women at 202 universities, we examined
adaptation to disrupted work–nonwork boundaries and identified workplace contextual features associated with
these adaptations. Results show that STEM women varied in their adaptation. Many women adapted their
professional image management approaches: From concealing nonwork roles—particularly when in less
supportive contexts, to revealing them—often to challenge existing ideal worker norms and advocate for
change. Also, women adapted through varying forms of role sacrifice; trading off one role’s execution for
another, mental detachment through psychological role withdrawal, or abandoning role duties through
behavioral role exit. Notably, some sacrificed their nonwork roles, although the dominant media narrative
highlights women sacrificing work roles. Work contextual features associated with boundary management
adaptation include structural support (e.g., flexibility) and social support (e.g., empathy). Results illuminate
the complex decisions faced by STEM women when they lose the scaffolding supporting their work–nonwork
interface. Moreover, the results have practical and theoretical implications for advancing workforce gender
equity, and for supporting all employees’ work–nonwork boundary management.