The state of STEM gender equity in 2023

We’ve updated the STEM Equity Monitor with the latest data on women and girls’ participation in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
21 July 2023
  • News

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Diversity in STEM
Science, technology and innovation

The monitor is a national data resource on women’s and girls’ participation in STEM. It captures the state of STEM gender equity in Australia and measures changes and trends.

You can use the interactive data to explore girls’ and women’s participation in STEM through school, higher education graduation and the workforce.

Women and girls are doing amazing things in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. But the roads they’ve travelled and their stories aren’t always visible. And it can be hard to see at what point women and girls’ representation drops off.

The STEM Equity Monitor is a national data resource on girls and women, and other underrepresented groups in STEM, that sheds light on these issues.

It follows participation in STEM from primary and high school, higher education, graduation, through to the workforce and into leadership.

The monitor presents all of these stories through interactive data, which allows you to explore your area of interest, browse across different stages of the STEM pathway and tailor data to suit your needs. It even has case studies sharing peoples’ experiences in school and in their STEM field or career.

Check it out and explore this enormous data resource. Find out more about the STEM Equity Monitor at industry.gov.au/STEMEquityMonitor.

This year’s monitor includes the latest data for many of our equity measures. We’ve also added:

The 2023 monitor shows some improvements for girls and women in STEM. For example,

  • 48% of parents with daughters talk to their kids about STEM at least once a week. This is up from 42% in 2020–21.
  • Girls make up the majority of students in many year 12 STEM subjects, including in the fields of biological sciences, earth sciences, chemical sciences and agricultural and environmental studies.
  • The number of women enrolling in university STEM courses increased by 31% between 2015 and 2021. The number completing these courses grew by 15% from 2020 to 2021.
  • The number of women in STEM-qualified occupations increased by 68% from 2012 to 2022.

But there is still a lot of work to do before Australian girls and women have an equal opportunity to learn, work and engage in STEM:

  • Girls’ confidence in STEM subjects is generally lower than boys and falls as they get older.
  • Girls only make up about a quarter of enrolments in year 12 information technology, physics and engineering classes.
  • Women make up 37% of enrolments in university STEM courses, and just 17% of VET STEM enrolments.
  • Only 15% of STEM-qualified jobs are held by women.
  • In 2022, the gap between women’s and men’s pay in STEM industries was $27,012, or 17%. This was slightly larger than in 2021.
  • Only 23% of senior management and 8% of CEOs in STEM-qualified industries are women.

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact people’s views around STEM. 51% of parents said that COVID-19 made them more likely to encourage their child to study or work in technology.

The Australian Government has commissioned an independent review of its programs to improve diversity in the STEM sector. We will release draft recommendations from the review for consultation soon.

Access the STEM Equity Monitor

Read the data report and explore the interactive data

More information

The minister announced the 2023 update of the monitor on 20 July 2023
The Advancing Women in STEM Strategy sets out how the government is increasing gender equity in STEM
The Women in STEM Decadal Plan outlines how the STEM sector can address gender equity up to 2030