Addressing the STEM Gender Gap
STEM professions — which encompass the Science, Technology, Engineering and Math fields — have historically suffered from a gap in female participation. While American female high school students outperform their male peers in Math and Science on average (as seen in Fig. 2 below), relatively few women enroll in STEM-related majors.
By the time of graduation, female students made up only 38.9% of all STEM Bachelor’s Degree graduates in 2007 (as seen in Fig. 7)— however the gender gap was even steeper in certain fields such as in Computer sciences, where males outnumbered females 4.36:1.
The gender gap in STEM professions comes amid a period of continued growth within the career outlook for this field. According to a report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, STEM professions are set to grow 8% between 2019 and 2029, in comparison to just 3.4% for other professions. Moreover, the U.S. median annual STEM wage is $86,980–roughly 128% more than the average U.S. of non-STEM wages at $38,160 a year.
Confronting Gender Stereotypes
Despite advances in recent decades regarding representations of females in STEM (such as media portrayals), many still regard Science, Engineering, Technology and Math as being “male” associated fields. Studies have found that the impacts of a variety of seemingly minor and benign influences can have an insidious impact on the perception of gender roles in regards to career selection. For example, empirical research has found that textbooks display imagery of males depicted as scientists at a far greater rate than females on average, which can have a detrimental impact on influencing perceptions of STEM careers being masculine in nature.
Bridging the Confidence Gap
Due in part to the presence of culturally-ingrained stereotypes, women and girls are likely to believe that they are “less capable” at math and science, than their male peers, despite outperforming their male counterparts in grades on average.
Studies appear to show that American boys tend to have greater self-confidence regarding thier own academic abilities, and are more likely to “blow off” poor grades-whereas girls are more likely to display anxiety regarding achieving higher grades.
The perfectionism that school-age girls often exhibit in regards to schoolwork (at least in comparison to thier male peers) may be the result of gendered expectations placed on girls — expecting them to consistently achieve in schoolwork while boys are afforded greater leniency from adults. On average, girls spend substantially more timing studying than thier male peers. While setting high expectations can improve grades, it can also cause girls to be more stressed out about thier academic performance, and can additionally lead to a diminished sense of self-confidence, as girls are often societally led to feel that they will never be “enough”.
While grades are important, the double standard applied to girls in school can have a harmful impact on the self-confidence of girls, which by extension, can cause them to (wrongly) believe that they are less capable than thier male peers.
Improving Perceptions of STEM Careers for Women
Placing greater emphasis on present-day and historical female role models within the science and technology disciplines within school curricula and media portrays is one way in which to change perceptions of the STEM discipline. Additionally, classroom and media portrayals can work to portray a more inclusive image of science and technology professionals by reducing the stereotypical image of STEM practitioners as being stoic, insular “lone-wolf” type of characters who — in turn frequently embody stereotypically masculine personality traits. Coursework and textbook material can work to display a multifaceted
Providing Support for Women Studying in STEM & Entering the Workforce
In addition to the measures listed above — additional support can be provided to women who are either currently or thinking about studying within STEM fields within Higher Ed. Courses can be designed to be more encouraging for diverse audiences -including women. Moreover, mentorship and networking programs designed for greater inclusion in mind can help improve inclusion among students within STEM disciplines.
Conclusion
Several professions that are poised to play a critical role throughout the 21st century — such as cybersecurity professionals, software developers, and statisticians — are located within the still-burgeoning STEM group of disciplines.
It is high time for more women to enter and thrive within these professions. Breaking down stereotypes regarding what type of person “should” be in STEM, in addition to providing advocacy and support to women and girls considering work and study within the STEM disciplines will be instrumental in advancing not only the outcomes of women, but also the STEM set of disciplines as a whole, in to the future.
