Generally from the 1970s to late 1990s women had very low involvement in STEM programs mainly because of "systemic exclusion" where women as a whole were excluded from specific educational programs and even some institutions. However, more and more women have begun to disregard what is assumed to be socially acceptable and go into majors that they used to be excluded from such as science and engineering. Unfortunately, these majors are male dominated and even though women can not be excluded from studying, it does not necessarily mean they are being welcomed either.
"Although the percentage of women with degrees in science, engineering and technology has doubled in the past 15 years, the proportion using their qualification professionally has not increased"
There are hardly any statistics on women in STEM programs across the U.S. because there are just not enough women in these fields to get accurate readings, however, what is known is:
"Although the percentage of women with degrees in science, engineering and technology has doubled in the past 15 years, the proportion using their qualification professionally has not increased"
There are hardly any statistics on women in STEM programs across the U.S. because there are just not enough women in these fields to get accurate readings, however, what is known is:
- in 2006-2007, females received only 15% of the A.S. degrees in engineering technologies
- in 2010, only 18.1% of four-year engineering degrees went to women
- engineering branches most favored by female students are Genetic and Bioengineering, Chemical Engineering and Industrial Engineering; with a higher percentage of students preferring civil (45%) and electronic (22%) engineering