A couple of weeks ago I heard a pretty startling statistic—only 29% of the STEM workforce is women. As a student of the sciences, I personally think it’s so important for women to enter fields in science, technology, engineering, and math. Here’s why:
1. When it comes to education, everyone deserves an equal opportunity—intelligence doesn’t discriminate.
2. In many of my science-related classes, I’ve noticed a disparity between the number of women and men and a difference in the participation of men and women. Representation definitely matters in increasing the confidence and acceptance of women in such fields.
3. Historically, there has been a lot of discrimination and undermining of women’s work in STEM fields that leads to discrediting female scientists. However, the only way to reverse such damage is to reclaim the positions and enter the fields with double the enthusiasm.
4. In a changing world, STEM careers are becoming more and more valuable. Not that other careers are undesirable, but there is an increased demand for workers in STEM careers. Pursuing a STEM major increases job stability and can help the percentage of women in the workforce in general.
5. And finally, STEM careers have so much potential—there is so much left undiscovered that it’s necessary to get as many people as possible to enter the work force and better the world for all of us.
Though I support women in whatever career (or lack of career) they choose, I think breaking the traditional pink collar along with the glass ceiling is incredibly important for all women and I hope to see an increase in the number of women in diverse fields!