YouScience annual report finds lingering career gaps for women in STEM fields

YouScience, an online career development and training platform based in American Fork, has released its annual “2024 Female Students and STEM Report,” in collaboration with Ford Next Generation Learning, an initiative working to reshape high school education to better align with the demands of the modern workforce. The report highlights critical insights into career exposure gaps among female students across the nation for a variety of in-demand jobs as well as offers actionable solutions to bridge these gaps in the STEM field careers.

The career exposure gap identifies the mismatch between students’ abilities and interests, revealing overlooked career options. This analysis is based on anonymous data from 233,000 female middle and high school students in the United States, collected in 2023.

Women play a crucial role in filling high-paying, in-demand STEM careers, the report concludes. Yet, they account for just 34 percent of the STEM workforce. The YouScience and Ford report reveals that significant exposure gaps are experienced by female students beginning in middle school and continuing through high school.

The report found that females are experiencing an 87 percent exposure gap in advanced manufacturing careers, a field projected to have 2.1 million unfilled jobs by 2039. It also found an 87 percent exposure gap in computer and technology professions, including careers like computer programmers, software developers, information cybersecurity analysts and others.

The findings said there is a 55 percent exposure gap in architecture and construction careers, a problem accentuated by the housing shortage and the booming construction industry

The report found a 30 percent exposure gap in the health science careers, including careers in a dental field experiencing a nationwide worker shortage.

With next-generation skill sets for engineers critically lacking, the data showed a 22 percent exposure gap in engineering, creating a risk that nearly one in three engineering roles will remain unfilled annually through at least 2030.

“The persistent career exposure gaps highlighted in the report underscore a critical need for enhanced guidance and support for female students in STEM-related fields,” said Amy Miller-Weiland, vice president of professional services and learning and development at YouScience. “Our data-driven insights reveal significant disparities that must be addressed to cultivate a diverse and skilled workforce prepared for the demands of the future economy,”

“The solutions outlined in this report must be applied promptly. We can no longer overlook young women who have the aptitude but have not been exposed to these opportunities,” said Cheryl Carrier, executive director at Ford Next Generation Learning. “We are now equipped with the knowledge to do better, so we must.”

YouScience, in collaboration with the Women Tech Council, has also released a report examining career exposure gaps for female students in Utah. The report compares these gaps to those faced by students nationwide.

Both reports can be accessed through the YouScience website.