Monica Eaton-Cardone, founder and CIO of Global Risk Technologies, most known for Chargebacks911, says women are at risk for getting pushed out of an ever-increasing amount of STEM jobs due to ong-standing gender bias.
Though some estimates are that 80 percent of jobs next decade will require technology skills(1), the chance for a future generation of women to occupy and excel in these positions is being impeded by social perceptions that STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) are “male industries”, says Eaton-Cardone.
According to the Harvard Business Review, the number of women in STEM has actually decreased since 1991. (2) This statistic shows no sign of improving, as the number of women studying and pursuing careers in technology has been going down by 0.5% each year; if this continues, less than 1% of the global tech workforce will be female by 2043. (3) When compounded with the prediction of the increase in STEM jobs, this data suggests a dismal job market for a future generation of women unless something is done to address the crisis.
Statistics indicate that women may not be staying away from STEM jobs due to a lack of interest. While 66% of fourth-grade girls report that they are interested in science and math, only 18% of all college engineering majors are female. (4) Currently, women hold less than 25% of STEM jobs in the United States. (3)
The gender bias in hiring for STEM jobs was highlighted in a randomized, double-blind 2012 study. Both male and female faculty members at research-intensive universities were given application materials of a fictitious student randomly assigned a male or female name. The male applicants were rated significantly more hirable and competent than female applicants with an identical application. Additionally, a 2014 study found that men were twice as likely to be hired, by both men and women, for a job that required math. (2)
Yet if there is bias, it has not harmed Eaton-Cardone. Though she had no STEM education at all, she has been able to excel despite it being male-dominated. She nonetheless notes that she is exceptional and cautions that the lack of female perspective in STEM could cripple the ingenuity of those fields, as diversity is crucial to creative development – especially given the fact that women represent the largest sector of consumer spending.
References:
(1) “Inspire Her Mind.” Web. http://verizon.com/powerfulanswers/inspirehermind/
(2) Williams, Joan C. “The 5 Biases Pushing Women Out of STEM.” Harvard Business Review, 24 Mar. 2015. http://hbr.org/2015/03/the-5-biases-pushing-women-out-of-stem
(3) Kermeliotis, Teo, and Jessica Ellis. “5 Reasons Technology World Needs More Geek Girls.” CNN, 26 Mar. 2014. http://cnn.com/2014/03/26/tech/5-reasons-tech-needs-geek-girls/
(4) “InspireHerMind: Viral Ad Hopes to Draw Girls to STEM Jobs.” NBC News, 25 June 2014. http://nbcnews.com/pop-culture/viral/inspirehermind-viral-ad-hopes-draw-...