Abstract

HERNANDEZ HERRERA, Claudia Alejandra  and  HERNANDEZ HERRERA, Mary Carmen. Revealing the gender gap in STEM: experiences of women graduated from a Federal Technological Institute. Acta univ [online]. 2023, vol.33, e3862.  Epub Mar 08, 2024. ISSN 2007-9621.  https://doi.org/10.15174/au.2023.3862.

In Mexico, only three out of 10 STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) professionals are women. Their low presence generates a loss of talent, little social progress, and a marked gender gap, in addition to the difficulties they face to enter the labor market. The objective of this article was to study the perceptions that STEM women, recently graduated from a Federal Technological Institute, have regarding challenges and discrimination in their work field, gender violence, their feelings about working in masculinized fields, and their vision of motherhood. To this end, 14 STEM females currently active in the labor market were interviewed. It was found that entering into the job market has been challenging for women graduates of STEM fields, since job positions tend to favor males, who are the ones receiving better opportunities.

Keywords : Labor market; STEM women; discrimination; gender violence; organizations.