The missing women in STEM? Assessing gender differentials in the factors associated with transition to first jobs

Abstract

Women remain underrepresented in the STEM workforce. We assess explanations for women's underrepresentation in STEM jobs, focusing on a cohort that came of age in the 1980s and 1990s, when women dramatically increased their representation in the scientific labor force. Data are from the NLSY79, and our analysis focuses on members of this cohort who received a college degree, with an emphasis on those who completed a degree in a STEM field. Our analyses test the extent to which college major, expectations to work in STEM, and family expectations shaped transitions into STEM occupations within two years of degree completion. Among those majoring in STEM fields there were no gender differences in transitioning into STEM jobs, though there were sizable differences in transitions to STEM employment by field of study. Of note are gender differences in associations between family expectations and transitions into STEM employment. The most career oriented women, who expected to marry late and limit fertility, were no more likely to enter STEM jobs than were women who anticipated marrying young and having two or more children. The men most likely to enter STEM occupations, in contrast, adhered to significantly more conventional gender ideologies than their female counterparts, expecting to marry at younger ages but also to remain childless. Results of our regression decomposition indicated that marriage and family expectations and gender ideology worked in opposite directions for men and women. Nonetheless, the majority of the gender disparity in transitions into STEM jobs was related to women's underrepresentation in engineering and computer science fields of study.

A Summary Report from the Research Partnership on Women in Science Careers

“…14 Women STEM faculty are more likely to leave their occupational field than professional medical women, although they do not exit the labor force. 15 Among those who majored in STEM fields, there were no differences between men and women in transitioning into academic STEM jobs. 15 Men had more conventional gender ideologies than their women counterparts.…”

“…15 Among those who majored in STEM fields, there were no differences between men and women in transitioning into academic STEM jobs. 15 Men had more conventional gender ideologies than their women counterparts. Marriage and family expectations were more traditional in male faculty.…”

A Longitudinal Comparison of Sustainability Learning between Men and Women in Engineering and Nursing Programmes

“…In the Watson et al study [7], environmental sustainability was more prominent in the curriculum and the students' behaviour, while social and economic sustainability were much less. It should be noted that, in general, there have been more men enrolling and finishing engineering degrees than women [8,9].…”

Disequilibrium in Gender Ratios among Authors who Contributed Equally

“…In particular, we were interested in trends involving the sharing of equal contributions among authors differing in gender, since inequities in distribution could translate into differences in gender recognition for scientific accomplishment. Numerous studies have documented underrepresentation of women in academic faculty and in scientific positions, especially at the more senior ranks [10; 11; 12; 13]. Although the mechanisms for these trends are complex one possibility is that they receive less credit for their scientific work [12].…”