In 2023, Mongolia had the highest share of women employed in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, with ** percent of all those employed in STEM fields being women. Belarus, Lesotho, the United States, and Barbados rounded out the top five countries employing the highest share of women in STEM fields.

Global Share of Women Graduating to Tertiary Education Among Female Graduates in Engineering, Manufacturing and Construction by Country, 2023 Discover more data with ReportLinker!

On average, in 2022 in OECD countries, around ** percent of female new entrants chose a STEM field. Six percent decided to pursue a career in natural sciences, mathematics, and statistics, ***** percent chose to study Information and Communication technologies (ICTs), and ***** percent started a degree in engineering, manufacturing, and construction.

Worldwide, there are more men than women working within science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) across all industries. In utilities, for instance, almost 40 percent of men were working with STEM, compared to just above 20 percent of women. Worldwide, only five countries had half or more of their female population working in STEM.

Women and Men in Spain: Rate of graduates in science, mathematics, computer science, engineering, industry and construction in the EU by period (1,000 persons aged 20 to 29). Annual. National.

Global Female New Entrants to Tertiary Education in Engineering Manufacturing and Construction Share by Country (Units (Persons)), 2023 Discover more data with ReportLinker!

In the Ukraine in 2020, ** percent of software developers are female. At the other end of the spectrum of European countries in terms of gender composition is Lithuania, where about ** percent of software developers are women. Notably, ***** from the top five countries with the highest share of women in software development are Baltic states. Generally, there are ***** women developers for every ten developers in Europe. Software developers are high in demand Software developers are high in demand on the job market. As software development is a broad category that includes a wide variety of specific tasks and skills to perform the job, there is a great gap between available talent and required staff. In general, software developers are involved in the development process of software, including the analysis of users’ needs or assessing the level of security to ensure that software projects meet requirements. Global gender imbalance in tech industry remains pervasive Overall, the gender composition of professionals employed in the tech industry remains imbalanced, as more males than females are generally employed by global tech companies. This observation can also be made when zooming in on technical positions. For example, women more commonly occupy user experience (UX) designer positions than developer positions.

Singapore Graduates from Polytechnic Diploma: Females: Engineering Sciences data was reported at 1,650.000 Person in 2016. This records a decrease from the previous number of 1,718.000 Person for 2015. Singapore Graduates from Polytechnic Diploma: Females: Engineering Sciences data is updated yearly, averaging 1,902.000 Person from Dec 1993 (Median) to 2016, with 24 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 2,549.000 Person in 2001 and a record low of 986.000 Person in 1993. Singapore Graduates from Polytechnic Diploma: Females: Engineering Sciences data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Department of Statistics. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Singapore – Table SG.G064: Education Statistics: Graduates from Educational Institutions.

The share of male informatics, computer science (CS), computer engineering (CE), and information technology (IT) new graduates is drastically higher than female graduates in all Europe, both for bachelor's and master's degrees. The gender distribution in Bulgaria, Romania, Estonia, and Turkey was slightly more balanced than the other countries — specially for master's graduates, where among themselves, these countries reached a rough average of ** percent males and ** percent females.

Singapore Graduates from University 1st Degree: Females: Engineering Sciences data was reported at 1,385.000 Person in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 1,375.000 Person for 2015. Singapore Graduates from University 1st Degree: Females: Engineering Sciences data is updated yearly, averaging 1,099.500 Person from Dec 1993 (Median) to 2016, with 24 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1,386.000 Person in 2008 and a record low of 227.000 Person in 1994. Singapore Graduates from University 1st Degree: Females: Engineering Sciences data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Department of Statistics. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Singapore – Table SG.G064: Education Statistics: Graduates from Educational Institutions.

Abstract

High quality postgraduate training in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) related disciplines in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is important to strengthen research evidence to advance development and ensure countries achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Equally, participation of women in STEM careers is vital, to ensure that countries develop economies that work for all their citizens. However, women and girls remain underrepresented in STEM due to gender stereotyping, lack of visible role models, and unsupportive policies and work environments. Therefore, there is a need to consolidate information on participation and experiences of women in STEM related postgraduate training and careers in SSA to enhance their contribution to realizing the SDGs. The primary objective of this study is to examine the participation and experiences of women in postgraduate training, and their subsequent recruitment, retention and progression in STEM careers in East Africa. A secondary objective is to establish the gender gaps in training and career engagement in selected STEM related academic disciplines in East Africa. The descriptive study will employ a mixed methods approach, including a scoping review, qualitative interviews, and quantitative analysis of secondary data. We will synthesize results to inform the development of an effective gendered approach and framework to improve participation and experiences of women in STEM training and career engagements in SSA. We will conduct the study over a period of five years.

Geographic coverage

Regional coverage (East Africa Region)

Analysis unit

Individual Women in STEM

Universe

Qualitative data: Women in Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) in postgraduate training and career Quantitative data: Postgraduate students, faculty, reseachers and supervisors (both men and women) in STEM in Inter-University Council for East Africa (IUCEA) member Universitiies

Sampling procedure

The study utilized a purposive sampling technique and targeted all universities that offered doctoral programs in applied sciences, technology, engineering, and mathematics. At the time, only 23 of the 74 universities in Kenya—equivalent to 30%—offered doctoral degrees in STEM. It was assumed that a similar or lower percentage would be found in the other five countries, namely Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, and South Sudan.

Purposive sampling was used to recruit participants from purposively selected universities and national higher education commissions and agencies for the study. In universities, all students enrolled in doctoral programs in STEM were considered. Additionally, female and male students' lecturers, supervisors, mentors, and other faculty members and researchers in the identified institutions were also considered for participation in the study.

Purposive sampling of doctoral students, faculty, and early career researchers (post-doctoral fellows within the first six years since receiving their PhD) was conducted using the following inclusion criteria:

Inclusion criteria i. Worked in a STEM field/discipline ii. Enrolled in a doctoral program within a STEM field iii. Early career researchers in a STEM field in research organizations iv. Faculty in a STEM field at a university

Additionally, registrars, postgraduate training coordinators, heads of departments, and officials from national agencies and ministries related to postgraduate training and research were purposively selected from all the identified universities to provide input on existing policies, guidelines, and enrollment data. For each of the mentioned groups, 7-12 interviews were conducted, totaling 60 interviews.

Sampling deviation

Qualitative For the Key informant interviews one participant was interviewed from the engineers board despite the scope being Inter-University Council for East Africa (IUCEA) member Universities.

Quantitative The online survey was completed by some researchers not working/teaching in IUCEA member universities

Mode of data collection

Other [oth]

Research instrument

Quantitative data collection A. Online Survey This was carried out through an online survey questionnaire that was circulated via email and other digital platforms such as WhatsApp. The questionnaire had various parts: Part A - Participants characteristics This section mainly collected demographic details such as age, gender, nationality, residence, marital status, income, highest level of education completed, year of study, supervision and mentoship relationship, field of study in STEM (Science, Technology, Enginnering and Mathematics), mode of funding of postgraduate degree,

Part B - Status of Gender equality This section collected information on students enrollment and graduation in masters and PhD in STEM looking at gender distribution,

Part C - Factors that contribute to participation of women in STEM This section collected information on the factors or situations encountered while pursuing career in STEM in your specific discipline

Part D - Strategies for Optimizing Women's Engagement in STEM This section collected information on the strategies can maximize engagement of women in STEM training PhD level and subsequent careers

Part E - Effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on women's progression In this section collected information on COVID-19 pandemic affect on research progress or deadline for submission of thesis, COVID-19 pandemic affect on current research funding, COVID-19 pandemic caused researchers to work from home, working from affected progress in studies, any direct responsibilities caring for children, number of children being taken care of, change of domestic work responsibilities since the COVID-19 outbreak, change of domestic work responsibilities since the COVID-19 outbreak on studies, COVID-19 pandemic affect on access to these research tools which inlude: Computer or laptop, Reliable Internet, Assistive Technology, Laboratory equipment, University Library, Archives/special collections and Access to patients/research participants. It als collected information on: any benefits to COVID-19 pandemic for your work, some ways one thinks their supervisor or line manager could support or help one manage the impacts of COVID-19 on studies

The questionnaire was developed in English and was latertranslated into French to accommodate the French speaking countries i.e Burundi and Rwanda. The French questionnaire was backtlanslated to English to ensure the questions still maintained their original meaning. This work was done by an external consultant and the French questionnaires were reviewed by the research assistant from Burundi and tested among postgraduate students in Light University.

All questionnares and modules are provided as external resources.

Cleaning operations

Qualitative The data was collected through qualitative interviews (In-depth interviews) and focus group discussions. They were audio recorded and the recordings were transcribed on Ms Ofiice.The transcript were subjected to data quality checks and the clean transcripts were anonyzed for data protection.

QUANTITATIVE Secondary data The data was collected from the five countries in an Ms Excel designed data abstraction sheet. The data abstraction sheet helped the universities administrators and rergistrars to directly enter the data only in the required field and for the defined or specific variables. For the dataset that was in hardcopy format the data entry was also done using the data abstraction sheets. The data sets were subjected to data quality checks for data quality. We used a standard template to ensure data editing took place during data entry.

Online survey Data entry was in form of responding to the survey. Data editing was done while cleaning the data.

Response rate

Quantitaive The online survey link was circulated using contacts within universities and research institutions in East Africa via email and social media platforms such as WhatApp hence it is impossible to track those who received the survey and hence it is not possible t calculate the survey response rate.

Sampling error estimates

NA

In 2024, a global developer survey revealed that approximately ** percent of the developers identified as male, while the share of female developers globally stood at around ** percent. This majority representation of males in the developer community underscores the historical trend of male dominance in the tech industry and highlights the challenges and barriers that women may face in entering or advancing in this field.

Singapore Enrolment in Uni 1st Deg Courses: Females: Engineering Sciences data was reported at 5,508.000 Number in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 5,342.000 Number for 2016. Singapore Enrolment in Uni 1st Deg Courses: Females: Engineering Sciences data is updated yearly, averaging 4,968.000 Number from Dec 1991 (Median) to 2017, with 27 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 5,543.000 Number in 2014 and a record low of 975.000 Number in 1992. Singapore Enrolment in Uni 1st Deg Courses: Females: Engineering Sciences data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Department of Statistics. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Singapore – Table SG.G070: Education Statistics: Enrolment.

In Sweden, the number of female registered students in higher education was far higher than the registered male students. In 2022, there were registered over 225,000 female students, compared to less than 150,000 male students. The number of both genders remained relatively stable throughout the last decade, but increased significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020, a total of 386,012 students were registered at higher education institutions in Sweden. Women in higher education The enrollment of women in higher education in Sweden follows a global trend. In each OECD country, women complete Bachelor’s degrees at higher rates than men. Moreover, there are female-dominated fields of study in higher education. Generally, social sciences and care study programs have a higher proportion of women than men. This can be seen in countries such as Australia, where nearly 75 percent of all new health students are women, compared to 25 percent within the fields of science, technology engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Female representation and equality in Sweden While women in Sweden have a small gender pay gap compared to men, with the average woman earning roughly 27,100 Swedish kronor and the average man earning nearly 30,800 Swedish kronor monthly, Sweden ranks well in terms of gender equality. Furthermore, almost half of Swedish parliament is composed of women, one of the highest shares of female MPs globally. Nevertheless, Swedish women still cite issues such as domestic violence as significant concerns.

According to a survey conducted in 2021 in India, about ** percent of respondents with the job title site reliability engineer were male in India. Notably, over ** percent of the recruitment associates were female in the country.

The share of employable women in India in 2025 saw a decrease from the previous year. Men accounted for about ** percent of employability that year. In fact, a larger share of women than men have constituted India’s employable talent since 2020 until a drop in 2025. Employability refers to a person's ability to gain and maintain employment. India’s professional talent pool Indian corporations and employers found a rich supply of highly employable graduates in states such as Maharashtra and Delhi. The demand for professionals with a year or more of working experience outweighed that of graduates without experience, thus, driving up the preference for internships. Some of the most employable candidates in 2024 were graduates with degrees in engineering, business administration and computer applications. Employability does not translate to employment However, higher employability did not translate to employment as was indicated by the country’s youth unemployment rate. Gender gap in participation at work has also persisted over the years. In addition to skill training, more jobs need to be created to absorb the growing unemployed and underemployed youth.

In 2020, almost 270,000 students were enrolled in tertiary education in Tunisia. Around 170,000 of these were women, making up roughly 63 percent of the students. From 2014 onwards, the number of students in tertiary education generally decreased, with male students always representing the minority of the enrollees.

Higher education in Tunisia

After obtaining the Baccalauréat at the end of secondary school, students in Tunisia can access higher education. Most students enrolled in university pursue bachelor’s degrees. In the 2017/2018 academic year, there were around 152,000 undergraduate students in the country, compared to approximately 37,000 postgraduates. Some foreign students also attend Tunisia's higher education institutions. Out of the total number of enrollees in tertiary education in the country, around 2.8 percent were foreign students as of 2019. In general, Tunisians mostly enroll in STEM disciplines (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). Commercial and administrative affairs, engineering, and computer science are the most popular fields of study in tertiary education.

Largest universities

As of the 2018/2019 academic year, there were around 277 tertiary education institutions in Tunisia. The vast majority, amounting to 203, were public establishments. Despite a constant annual increment in number, private universities remain less prevalent in the country and attract a lower number of students compared to public institutes. The public universities of Sfax, Carthage, and Tunis El Manar lead the ranking of Tunisian universities by number of enrollees. In recent years, enrollment in tertiary education has been generally decreasing in Tunisia.

In the academic year 2023/24, there were 331,602 international students from India studying in the United States. International students The majority of international students studying in the United States are originally from India and China, totaling 331,602 students and 277,398 students respectively in the 2023/24 school year. In 2022/23, there were 467,027 international graduate students , which accounted for over one third of the international students in the country. Typically, engineering and math & computer science programs were among the most common fields of study for these students. The United States is home to many world-renowned schools, most notably, the Ivy League Colleges which provide education that is sought after by both foreign and local students. International students and college Foreign students in the United States pay some of the highest fees in the United States, with an average of 24,914 U.S. dollars. American students attending a college in New England paid an average of 14,900 U.S. dollars for tuition alone and there were about 79,751 international students in Massachusetts . Among high-income families, U.S. students paid an average of 34,700 U.S. dollars for college, whereas the average for all U.S. families reached only 28,026 U.S. dollars. Typically, 40 percent of families paid for college tuition through parent income and savings, while 29 percent relied on grants and scholarships.

Employability among Bachelor of Commerce graduates in India was ** percent in 2025, a significant decrease from 2023. Within the commerce stream, obtaining a B.Com degree is often the minimum requirement for getting a job. The economic slowdown in India has been a major factor in reduced hiring among companies. What is Bachelor of Commerce? An academic course such as Bachelor of Commerce degree that provides theoretical knowledge is different from courses in banking and finance, chartered accountancy and office management. For instance, in chartered accountancy, there is an ’article-ship' which prepares the graduate with hands-on learning experience under the guidance and mentorship of experienced professionals in a company. Although this section of graduates have numerous job opportunities right after graduation, landing a job is difficult for many even today without the practical skillset. In recent years, the number of women graduates with a bachelor's degree has increased in the country. Women undergraduates of commerce had an employability rate of over ** percent in 2019. Engineering students in demand   The share of employable talent across the country was above ** percent for the last two years, an increase since 2014. While the highest scope of employability among undergraduates was among the engineering and the technology graduates, there was still a massive skill gap in terms of experience for industry requirements.

In the academic year 2023/2024, ******* students were enrolled in medicine and healthcare programs in Italy. Economics counted ******* enrollments, while ******* students were studying industrial and information engineering. On the contrary, only ****** undergraduates studied agricultural sciences and veterinary. More than ** percent of the students studying education, linguistic studies, psychology, medicine, design, law, humanities, and political science were female, while male were a significant majority in disciplines such as computer science, engineering, and sports science. Leading universities In the academic year 2023/2024, ******* students were enrolled at La Sapienza University of Rome, the largest Italian university. Other universities with more than ****** students are the universities of Bologna and Turin. According to the Italian research institute CENSIS, the Alma Mater Studiorum University of Bologna is the best public university in the country among those with more than ****** enrollments. The criteria adopted for the evaluation were based on services, scholarships and taxes, facilities, web services, internationalization, and employment possibilities. Growing popularity of online courses Among the largest Italian universities, an online university ranked at the second place. In fact, over ****** students were enrolled at the Pegaso online University in the academic year 2023/2024. In total, in 2024, ******* students chose e-learning for their bachelor's studies, while ****** individuals were enrolled in an online master's course. Recently, the number of students who graduated from an online university constantly increased. In the academic year 2013/2014, ***** people graduated from an online university. In 2024, the number of students more than doubled, reaching about ****** graduates.