Women and Girls in STEM: Navigating a Male-Dominated Field
Women in STEM, including our own esteemed scholars, are pulling ahead in higher education and the workforce, effectively shifting the boys-only culture that’s dominated the industry for centuries. And we’re cheering them on from the sidelines as we continue to offer research programs and other resources that help our students achieve their dreams.
It’s not a secret that the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics have always been heavily male-dominated. Think about how many movies and television shows–Hidden Figures, The Big Bang Theory, Lessons in Chemistry, Mean Girls–have directly or indirectly addressed the fact that STEM is historically a boys’ club.
For centuries, women and girls were restricted from pursuing meaningful education or careers in STEM. The world has been changing for decades though, and as we look ahead we see female chemists, data analysts, and engineers carving out distinguished careers their grandmothers could only dream of.
The future is bright, but it’s important to acknowledge how far we still have to go.
Ongoing Challenges for Women in STEM
Even in the 21st century, we’re still facing a gender representation issue both in university settings and the world of work.
As of March 2024, women only accounted for 34 percent of the STEM workforce. While they earn a majority of bachelor’s degrees in psychology, biological sciences, and social sciences, only 24 percent of women earn engineering degrees, 21 percent earn computer science degrees and 24 percent earn physics degrees.
And when we consider intersectionality, the numbers are even more jarring. Black, Latina, and indigenous women make up less than 10 percent of the STEM workforce and only 14 percent of STEM bachelor’s degrees.
Of course, these numbers don’t reflect the intellect or work ethic of female students and professionals.
According to a report from the National Girls Collaborative Project, or NGCP, “girls/young women and boys/young men do not significantly differ in their abilities in mathematics and science, but do differ in their interest, confidence, and sense of belonging” in STEM.
There are a number of factors that perpetuate this gender disparity in some of the highest-paying fields in the world.
In 2012, Yale University conducted a study effectively proving bias against women in STEM. And In 2015, Joan C. Williams, Professor of Law at the University of California, published “The 5 Biases Pushing Women Out of STEM” in the Harvard Business Review to further explore how those obstacles affect female scientists in the workplace.
However, female students pursuing degrees in STEM shouldn’t let this dissuade them. Our world is evolving rapidly, and the barriers to women and girls in STEM are being broken down for the benefit of everyone.
Promising Trends Show Progress for STEM Fields
At Scholar Launch, we’re acutely aware of the historically-informed obstacles our female students may face as they progress with their education and careers. But we have more than enough reason to be confident in the future of STEM.
Roughly 200 to 300 Scholar Launch alumni are female STEM scholars. One of our alum–let’s call her Student T–collaborated with a professor from New York University to develop an algorithm that can generate images based on text prompts, similar to the AI tech we’re familiar with today. She developed this research 3 to 4 years ago and, impressively enough, it was later used to detect forgery in artwork.
Another Scholar Launch STEM alum–Student S–worked with a former Yale professor to create music therapy for Alzheimer’s patients. She was later invited to an academic conference to present her findings with her Faculty Advisor, leading both the University of Pennsylvania and Harvey Mudd College to include a personal notes of acknowledgement with her acceptance letters.
Our female students can also look forward to lucrative, successful careers alongside other women after college. The number of women in the American STEM workforce increased a promising 31 percent between 2011 and 2021, and the number of young women pursuing STEM in higher education is also on the rise. Several organizations, like the American Association of University Women (AAUW), are dedicated to exploring and addressing the STEM gap and other gendered disparities.
Young women in STEM also have access to various scholarships created to achieve greater equity in higher education. We at Scholar Launch are beyond excited for the increase in female physicists, surgeons, and biologists that will lead us through the rest of this century. We’re confident our female scholars and alumni will excel in STEM and make us proud, despite any antiquated biases that may stand in their way.
