• New Drift

  • Women In Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM)

Generally in India people have this stereotype thought that women’s are unable to achieve good position in Maths, Science and Engineering. Now let’s see the reality -

DATA

  • 43% of STEM graduates in India are women as compared to 35% of the global averages.
  • 14% of researchers in India are women as compared to 30% of the global average.
  • 15% of faculty positions in science in India are occupied by women.

Still there are some challenges for women in India in terms of education like-

- Patriarchal culture
- Lack of Infrastructure: 11% colleges in India exclusively reserved for women, the majority offer programs in arts and Commerce rather than Science.
- Repercussions of perceived “women-friendly” measure: In some institutes, to ensure their
safety, women are advised to work only during official hours, while men can access labs any
time.
- Gender gap: Women in the field of STEM are known to be paid less for their research work compared to men.

Government initiatives to promote women in STEM

• Knowledge Involvement Research Advancement through Nurturing (KIRAN) Scheme to encourage women
scientists.
• SERB (Science and Engineering Research Board)-POWER (Promoting Opportunities for Women in Exploratory
Research): It aimed to mitigate gender disparity in science and engineering research funding.
• Vigyan Jyoti Scheme: It encourages girl students of Class 9 to 12 to pursue education and career in S&T particularly
in the areas where women are under-represented.
• GATI Scheme: The Gender Advancement for Transforming Institutions (GATI) will develop a comprehensive
Charter and a framework for assessing Gender Equality in STEM.
• Indo-US Fellowship for Women in ‘STEMM’ (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Medicine).

Patriarchy is a problem in our country. We need to change our socialisation process, the traditional gender roles/ division of labour supported by cultural ethos prohibits women from competing with men. Time has come to break the glass ceiling in sectors which are considered “ Male Dominated”. Thanks to Feminist Movement.

In 2021, the country of Georgia had the highest share of women employed in STEM fields, with 55.6 percent of all those employed in STEM fields being women. Mongolia, Kiribati, Dominican Republic, and Cambodia rounded out the top five countries employing the highest share of women in STEM fields.17-Aug-2022. Where as India tops the world in producing female graduates in STEM but ranks 19th in employing them. According to the United Nations, women constitute merely 14% of the total 280,000 scientists, engineers and technologists in research development institutions in India

Traditional gender disparities are being sought to disappear in order to increase diversity across all industries. More men working as nurses, more women working as engineers, more men teaching, more women working as business owners, etc.
The same is true of men in STEM, in my opinion. Consider pursuing an advanced degree in the field of your choice if you have the necessary aptitude and motivation. Certain subdisciplines, which have historically been considered to be “man’s jobs,” do provide significant challenges for women. Yes, there are still discriminatory attitudes against women in academic and leadership roles, and even without those things in academia, some of these challenges are a result of subpar social norms and antiquated assumptions.
It’s somewhat unexpected that this question has even been posed. Given all other (nearly) equal circumstances, why shouldn’t women pursue professions in STEM? Unless one’s thought process naturally favours one side,

To bridge the gap in gender inequality and improve the future of women in STEM, it will take a collective effort from teachers, industry leaders, society, government, and individuals. We need to implement robust programs to build a strong pipeline of women through early mentorship, recognition of women role models, reskilling, and engaging STEM education. Strong STEM education creates critical thinkers, problem-solvers, and next-generation innovators.

In addition to such policy imperatives, it would be prudent to focus on a few further measures such as the mandatory representation of women in Boards, massive rollout of women-centric mentoring programs, flexible or remote work setups, and providing childcare and after-school support. Such measures will ease women into their work setup and redefine the culture in STEM. Also, companies should recruit more women to create diversity in the workplace.