Efforts to reassure young women that a career in tech might be for them don’t appear to be working as hoped, new research suggests.
While seven-in-ten told researchers from Walbrook Institute London that they had genuine interest in a tech career, 72% didn’t feel they had enough knowledge to study a degree in computer science or IT.
Half said they were scared of being over-challenged in STEM fields, with 42% thinking that subjects will be too difficult. Meanwhile, 38% don’t feel that other people believe in their capabilities.
There are also practical concerns, with 84% saying they want to support their family and be present in their lives. Six-in-ten said they were worried about the potentially demanding workload associated with STEM courses.
Meanwhile, 43% were concerned that the teaching sessions and workloads would mean they couldn’t take on a part-time job to fund their studies.
It’s not that women don’t want to do these courses, the study found. Indeed, 70% of respondents said they were interested in STEM courses and 85% valued the long-term career success they can lead to.
“The question isn’t whether there is a problem with STEM education’s appeal to young women – we’ve known for years that there is one. The question is what will it actually take to finally fix it?” said Dr Glory Aigbedion, lecturer at Walbrook Institute London.
“The data shows that the majority are interested in the topics, they just need to know that these courses and careers can work for them.”
Two-thirds of students said they knew someone working in STEM – but most of those role models were male. One-in-three didn’t know anyone at all in the field.
“While it’s good to see that most of the young women surveyed did know someone working in STEM, these results also show some invisible barriers,” said Aigbedion.
“Schools, colleges, institutes and universities can offer all sorts of STEM courses, but that won’t help overcome a lack of confidence in young women. We need teachers, mentors, family and friends to be creating early STEM awareness programs and talking more openly about the benefits it can bring and breaking these very obvious barriers down.”
Last month, the government announced that it was spending £8.2 million to encourage and help girls to study advanced maths and progress into AI-related careers.
“Today’s brightest maths minds are tomorrow’s AI pioneers, and this government is opening the door for groups who have so far been left behind in the AI revolution,” said education secretary Bridget Phillipson.
The funding, part of a revamped Advanced Maths Support Programme, will target around 7,500 pupils from 400 disadvantaged secondary schools. The program will include teacher training and student enrichment courses on the key maths concepts and skills needed for AI.
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