5 reasons why girls should pursue stem.
Stem careers are becoming increasingly popular among young women today. However, despite their popularity, only 1% of female students major in these fields. Why aren’t more females pursuing STEM degrees? Here are five reasons why girls shouldn’t shy away from studying science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
1. It's a great career choice for girls who want to work with the latest technologies.
If you want to be part of an industry that is constantly evolving, then this field might just be perfect for you! You will have access to new technological advancements as they become available.
This means that your job prospects will always remain high because there will always be room for advancement.
If you're looking for a stable profession where you can earn good money, then consider working in one of these areas: software development, web design or IT support.
The demand for engineers is expected to increase by 20 percent over the next decade. The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that jobs will be available for about 634,000 new graduates this year alone.
That means there could be plenty of opportunities if you choose an area like computer programming or mechanical design. You can also expect salaries to rise as well. According to PayScale, the average salary for software developers was $92K last month.
2. STEM will help close the gender pay gap.
According to Forbes, “women make up less than 25 percent of all workers employed in the U.S., but hold nearly half of all professional occupations." This statistic shows how important it is for us to encourage our daughters to study STEM subjects so that we close the wage gap between men and women.
STEM education helps develop critical thinking skills which are essential when solving problems. It teaches them problem-solving techniques, logical reasoning, creativity, and innovation.
There are many ways to get involved in STEM-related activities. For example, Girl Scouts offers programs such as robotics camps and coding classes.
3. There is an increasing need for women in tech.
Women make up less than 20% of IT professionals worldwide. Why does it seem like there aren't more female developers out there? What's stopping them from getting into coding?
The lack of role models and mentors means that many young girls grow up thinking they're not good enough to pursue their dreams.
They may even feel pressured by family members who think they shouldn't go down such a path because "it isn't ladylike". This leads to low self-esteem which often results in depression and anxiety.
Over the last several years, there has been a concerted effort to bring more girls and women into STEM.
However, the results have been less than spectacular. Despite all the efforts, there are still not enough girls or women in STEM fields.
It's for this reason that we formed Girls for STEM a 501(c)3 non-profit organization with a mission of inspiring girls to pursue STEM careers. We do this by producing inspirational videos, mentoring programs, and other outreach activities.
4. STEM related jobs tend to be high paying
According to Forbes, STEM careers pay better than other fields such as Business Administration, Accounting, Finance, etc. These types of jobs also require less education compared to others.
Here's what you should expect if you decide to pursue a career in these areas.
Salary
Average annual earnings were around $90k per year according to Payscale.com. However, some companies offer higher wages.
Job security
Jobs in STEM fields are generally considered secure since most people don’t leave those positions unless they find something else that pays much better.
Benefits
Many employers provide health insurance, retirement plans, paid time off, tuition reimbursement, and bonuses.
Some companies even give employees stock options.
Work-life balance
According to Glassdoor, work/life balance tends to be very positive among engineers. They report having plenty of free time after working hours and in most cases, there's plenty of work from home opportunities compared to other careers.
5. Girls have been shown to do better than boys when they study STEM subjects.
A recent report by the National Center For Education Statistics found that girls outperform boys in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. The same was true in math and reading.
This is why we created our video series called “Face for Girls for Stem" where we feature young women who are pursuing stem. We discuss their journeys and challenges in hope to inspire more girls to pursue stem.
We want to inspire girls to become future leaders in the world of technology.
Our goal is to help change the gender gap in STEM so that everyone can benefit from new technologies.
If you'd like to learn more about other women in stem, please check out our YouTube channel here.
Conclusion
If you are looking for a career that has a promising outlook and great potential for growth, studying science, technology, engineering, and mathematics might be the right choice for you.
Whether you want to work in research and development, or you want to become an entrepreneur, STEM careers can provide you the income and job security you have been searching for.
We hope this article has helped you understand the importance of studying STEM fields, and we encourage you to consider these areas of study.
We hope you enjoyed our blog about STEM careers. With this knowledge, we hope that more girls and women will consider studying these subjects and go on to pursue STEM careers.