Reaching for the Stars: Women in STEM

In January of 1978, NASA announced that its newest selection of astronauts would include women for the first time. Among this class was Sally Ride, who would become the first American woman in space. While preparing to send women into orbit for the first time, the male-dominated board of NASA engineers found themselves considering what exactly a woman might need. Laughing, Ride recalled in an interview :

I remember the engineers trying to decide how many tampons should fly on a one-week flight; they asked,?

“Is 100 the right number?”?

“No. That would not be the right number.”

“Well, we want to be safe.”?

“Well, you can cut that in half with no problem at all.”

Ride further described how NASA tackled the issue of femininity in space:

The engineers at NASA, in their infinite wisdom, decided that women astronauts would want makeup—so they designed a makeup kit. A makeup kit brought to you by NASA engineers… You can just imagine the discussions amongst the predominantly male engineers about what should go in a makeup kit. So they came to me, figuring that I could give them advice. It was about the last thing in the world that I wanted to be spending my time in training on. They had never thought about what personal equipment a female astronaut would take. They knew that a man might want a shaving kit, but they didn’t know what a woman would carry. Most of these were male engineers, so this was totally new and different to them.?

This incident, among many, highlight the need for better representation of women in STEM.?

Women in STEM

“STEM” is an acronym that refers to science, technology, engineering, and math. The term was popularized by the National Science Foundation in 2001. According to the US Census Bureau, STEM encompasses computer, mathematics, engineering, life sciences, physical sciences, social sciences, and health care career fields.?

In the last few decades, there has been a push to include more women in STEM-related fields. While some progress has been made, women are still grossly underrepresented in most STEM fields.?

In 1970, women comprised only 38% of the U.S. workforce, including 8% of all STEM-related fields. As of 2019, that number increased to 48% of the general workforce and 27% of STEM workers. In some specific roles, the disparity is even worse; women comprise only about 25% of workers in computer fields and 15% of all engineers.?

The representation of women in STEM is similar in the UK, with only 24% of STEM workers being women.?

Research has consistently shown that diverse staff leads to higher productivity, innovation, creation, and overall profit. Yet half the population is starkly absent from STEM companies.?

How did this happen? Perhaps more importantly, how can we fix it?

Girls and Women are dissuaded from pursuing STEM?

In 2023, most girls are not blatantly told that “math is for boys.” The unconscious signals they are given, however, tell another story. Implicit biases, including the false belief that math is an inherently masculine field, discourage many girls from pursuing STEM. Research has also shown that women are more likely to suffer from math anxiety; furthermore, girls are susceptible to inheriting this anxiety from female educators.?

This bias doesn’t stop in high school — studies indicate that bias against women is one of the most prominent determinants dissuading women from entering traditionally male-dominated fields. For those who do pursue STEM, many women experience sexism and differentiated treatment in both higher education and professional contexts.?

Caregiving and pregnancy also play a role in the lack of female presence in STEM. In addition to facing discrimination for being pregnant, women are more likely to be placed in a caregiving role; this often results in the difficult choice between career advancement and childcare provision. Additionally, research has shown that almost half of American women working in science-related fields leave their full-time positions after starting a family.?

There are also fewer female role models present in STEM fields, as many media depictions of scientists, inventors, and mathematicians are male. This may be in part due to the Matilda effect , the phenomenon in which the work of women scientists goes unrecognized or is misattributed to male colleagues. With no examples of successful women scientists, girls and women may have difficulty seeing themselves able to fill STEM roles.?

Finally, those women who do enter STEM fields often feel isolated. After experiencing workplace sexism or a simple lack of female camaraderie, many women leave STEM fields to seek environments in which they feel more comfortable. This leaky employment pipeline then leads to the perpetuation of women being underrepresented in STEM.?

So what can we do?

Empowering women in STEM begins with inspiring girls in school. One way of fostering the pursuit of math is by promoting a growth mindset , in which ability is learned and developed, rather than being innate. Spatial skills are also important for succeeding in STEM. While men tend to outperform women in this area, spatial skills can easily be gained through education and intervention.?

Another simple way to foster women in STEM fields is to create better representation . Whether highlighting successful female scientists or instating a mentorship program, having a role model increases a woman’s likelihood of succeeding and remaining in a STEM field.?

Additionally, active steps can be taken to interrupt and reduce biases against women in STEM fields. Programs like implicit bias testing and bystander intervention training can help workers to identify implicit bias and work to overcome them.?

Lastly, anonymous reporting systems help to combat sexism or harassment. Rather than placing the responsibility of equality on the women themselves, it’s important to create systematic procedures to address biases and make every worker feel safe and supported.

When asked about the momentousness of her trip to space, Sally Ride explained her attitude toward the attention her flight was receiving:?

It’s too bad this is so important. It’s too bad that we’re not further along that it’s a normal occurrence for a woman to go up on a Space Shuttle flight. It’ll be a wonderful day when this isn’t news…? I completely appreciated that this was really an important thing. On the other hand, it was just a little bit irritating that it was so important, because I thought it should be a very natural thing for women to be astronauts.?

As of March 2023 , 72 women have been to space. From makeup to spacewalks, Ride serves as a reminder that women are more than capable of entering STEM fields —? and they might just teach men about feminine hygiene along the way.?

Prepared by: Cassidy Mayo