In the year 2026, women’s rights have improved… to an extent. However, there are still many problems faced by women today. Inequality in the workforce and education, especially in scientific and engineering fields, is one of them.
Even though women earn nearly half of all bachelor’s degrees in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics), according to Bizcommunity, only 29% of doctoral candidates are women, and only between 23% to 29% of senior roles in these fields are occupied by women. This phenomenon is known as the “leaky pipeline” – a term describing the predictable loss of women in STEM careers, especially in more advanced positions despite the relatively similar starting point to men.
One reason for this phenomenon is that women in STEM earn, on average, 28% less than their male counterparts. They also have fewer female role models and mentors available at an educational level since only 28.6% of white women and a mere 5.2% of black women hold STEM-related degrees. In the Staff Profiles page for Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering on the University of Pretoria website, there are 44 staff members listed, consisting of professors, lecturers, the chairperson, instructors, helpers, and administrators. Of these, there are no female professors, and only two out of the seven associate professors listed are women. The men also largely outnumber women among the lecturers. At the time of writing this article, the university has not replied to PDBY’s request for comment and further statistics from the EBIT faculty.
It does have to be said that a lack of representation in some fields does not exclusively affect women, but is instead a reflection of restrictive gender norms pervasive in our society. This is seen in the underrepresentation of men in fields like Psychology. According to the Daily Maverick, only one in five registered psychologists in South Africa is male. Unlike women in STEM, this underrepresentation cannot be blamed on financial insecurity, but is a result of gender bias and expectations on men to be “emotionless” or the idea that men are less empathetic. Young men do not see themselves represented in the field of psychology and, as a result, might be put off from studying or working in it.
Much like men in fields like psychology, women in STEM also face prejudices stemming from gender stereotypes – for example, women being less logical or science-oriented. From an early age, young girls are encouraged to pursue more feminine roles: the little girl is given a doll for Christmas while the little boy gets a chemistry set. As a result, people grow up with an unconscious idea that women cannot succeed in STEM-related fields compared to men.
Our country does have organisations like Women in Tech South Africa that are building support structures and visibility for women in STEM. UP also has initiatives like the WISE-UP (Women in STEM) programme that aims to promote women in STEM.
The STEM fields, on both a career and educational level, need to change drastically in how the field treats and appreciates women. Every single female student studying today should know that they are not simply working for a degree, but are working towards changing the STEM field for future generations of women.
Visuals: Mila Jordaan
