Overview
A blueprint for action from the Gender Pathways collective. By 2040, the collective aims for young women to make up 40% of people on these pathways.
The report highlights persistent gender imbalances across STEM subjects, technical qualifications and apprenticeships – despite growing demand for engineering and technology skills. It explores barriers that limit girls’ participation and how inequalities emerge throughout the education system.
This blueprint sets out practical recommendations to help increase the number of girls and young women progressing into engineering and technology education pathways. It calls for coordinated government action to:
- strengthen STEM teaching
- improve careers education and enrichment opportunities
- promote gender-equitable cultures in schools and colleges
The aim is to create inclusive pathways that encourage more girls and young women to study STEM and progress into rewarding engineering and tech careers.
Key findings
- by 2040, we want to see young women and girls making up 40% of young people on educational pathways into engineering and technology careers
- only 17% of the engineering and technology workforce are women, and young women and girls are grossly underrepresented on educational pathways into engineering and technology
- gender differences emerge early, with only 29% of girls aged 11 to 18 interested in engineering careers compared with 63% of boys
- change is possible: This blueprint for action provides solutions that open doors for the next generation of female engineers
- an estimated 240,000 people are needed to join the engineering and technology workforce each year up to 2030. If 50% of workforce entrants were women, they would collectively earn around £1 billion more every year, compared with them going into other roles
- together, the Gender Pathways collective ask government to commit to gender equity in the educations and skills system
Key insights
Gender inequality in engineering and technology begins long before young people enter the workforce.
Girls are less likely than boys to express interest in engineering careers. Their participation in relevant subjects remains low across GCSEs and A Levels, as well as technical qualifications and apprenticeships. This suggests that barriers are embedded throughout the education system and are reinforced by stereotypes, limited exposure to careers and concerns about working in male-dominated sectors.
Improving gender equity is not only an issue of fairness but also an economic necessity. With the UK needing around 240,000 new entrants to engineering and technology roles each year, increasing the number of girls and young women on these pathways could help address skills shortages. This would also support growth and enable more young women to access higher-paying careers.
The recommendations from the Gender Pathways collective focus on sustained action across teaching, careers education and school culture. We recognise that lasting change requires support throughout a young person's educational journey.
Who this is for
- Policymakers
- MPs
- Careers leads
- PEIs
- STEM outreach organisations
- Teachers
Supporting evidence
We've pulled together all the evidence that sits behind this blueprint for action.
