Girls have STEM dreams too

In recognition of International Women’s Day – DigitALL: innovation and technology for gender equality – this Wednesday 8 March, I have been thinking about my love of maths and how things played out for me.

I would line up all my dolls and teddies and sit in front of them on my bedroom floor. I am not sure what I was actually saying or doing but can remember my dream of being a teacher one day. I was six years old.

When I reached high school the dream of teaching strengthened to focus on maths and science. I wanted to continue the love of experimenting and analysis, and I was good at it. However, I left school at the completion of year 10, I could not see a path to and beyond university due to family circumstances.

By chance at the age of 25, I came across an advertisement in the local Bundaberg newspaper describing a twenty-week course to gain a job as a sugar cane chemist. I enrolled. I immersed myself in physics, chemistry, laboratory techniques…nine subjects and achieved nine distinctions. I was learning and having fun. I was fortunate to spend one year at a sugar mill as the head chemist, yet once again due to family circumstances I had to end this career chapter.

About three years later, I started working with engineers at Main Roads. I asked lots of questions and realised I was once again surrounded by science, mathematics with the added flavour of engineering and technology. Although I wasn’t teaching, I was the student and wanted to learn as much as I could.

Five years on, I jumped at the opportunity to be an Information Technology Logistics Manager. Who knew this would then lead to my 20+ years project leadership career.

How are we as project leaders encouraging girls to follow their dreams and know a career in STEM is possible?

STEM is the curriculum for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

STEM Equity Monitor 2022

Source: Department of Industry, Science and Resources

• The proportion of girls who know which subjects make up STEM increased by 3 percentage points, growing from 64% in 2019–20 to 67% in 2021–22
• The number of women enrolling in university STEM courses increased by 24% between 2015 and 2020.
• The proportion of women in STEM-qualified occupations has increased by 2 percentage points, growing from 13% in 2020 to 15% in 2021.
• The gender pay gap for full-time workers in STEM industries shrank from $28,994 in 2020 to $26,784 in 2021.

However, there is still a lot of work to do to achieve equal opportunity across Australia’s diverse populations to learn, work and engage in STEM.

• Girls’ confidence in STEM subjects is generally lower than boys, and falls as they get older.
• Women only make up 36% of enrolments in university STEM courses, and just 16% of enrolments in vocational STEM courses.
• Women only make up 27% of the workforce across all STEM industries, a 1 percentage point drop from 2020.
• Just 23% of senior management and 8% of CEOs in STEM-qualified industries are women.
• On average, women still earn 18% less than men across all STEM industries.