While women make up 47 percent of the US work force, they represent only 26 percent of people who work in STEM (science, technology, engineering, or math).
Further, only 12 percent of female college students will graduate with a bachelor’s degree in science, and just 3 percent will continue to work in a STEM field 10 years after graduation.
Why does this matter? STEM careers tend to be significantly more lucrative than non-STEM jobs, with women in science earning 33 percent more than women in all other fields. Closing the gender gap in science will help to close gender gaps in income.
National Center for Women and Technology, 2017
