The percentage of women who graduate in science, technology, engineering and mathematics courses in Brazil has fallen in half since the COVID-19 pandemic. 
In 2019, 53% of women who entered courses in these areas formed, while 37% of men received diplomas. Since 2020, both percentages have fallen, but among women the fall was greater. In 2023, 27% of women and 23% of men completed training. This represents, for them, a 48% drop in the training rate and, for them, a drop of 36%.
The information is survey by Nexus – Data Research and Intelligence, based on data from the National Institute for Educational Studies and Research Anísio Teixeira (Inep), released on Tuesday (11), in International Women and Girls Day in Science.
For Nexus CEO Marcelo Tokarski, the data, from the pandemic, is worrying. “The conclusion rate has been falling between them and them, but in greater intensity among women, probably a reflection of economic impacts, such as unemployment or falling income, and issues involving families care tasks,” he says.
The vice president of the Brazilian Society for the Progress of Science (SBPC), Francilene Garcia, explains that, in periods of crisis, women end up being more demanded.
“[A pandemia] It affected everyone and greatly affected women. It is natural that we understand that there is a greater pressure from society over women in periods of sanitary crises like this we lived. Women end up being demanded to assume or occupy spaces with their family nucleus, which most likely put them in unfavorable situations to continue training. ”
Francilene Garcia adds that over the last few years affirmative policies such as scholarships offer, edicts aimed at women, among others, developed by both governments and research supporters and other organizations, were fundamental for the inclusion of women, and that now these policies also need to look at their guarantee of their formation.
“It is important that we revise policies and make adjustments so that this presence of women is stronger,” argues the vice president of SBPC.
Science Careers
Careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics are still more dominated by men in Brazil. The data, however, show that over the past decade more women have been interested in these areas of formation.
The survey shows that in 2023, 74% of the Stem (Stem Acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) courses were men, while a room, 26%, were women.
Although the female percentage is smaller, it has increased, though not in the same proportion as that of men.
From 2013 and 2023, the absolute number of women who entered the degrees in exact and biological sciences increased from 176,547 in 2013 to 227,317 in 2023, which represents a 29%increase. In the same period, the growth of men’s freshmen was double, reaching 56%.
“The data indicate that the male presence is continuing in the academic environment of science, engineering, mathematics and technologies, indicating that there are still barriers to attract Brazilians to these courses. And the biggest proof of this is that even less, every year the conclusion rate is higher among women than among men, ”explains Tokarski.
Most sought after courses
According to one study, STEM courses are classified into three large groups. One of the groups is natural sciences, mathematics and statistics, including 22 courses linked to natural sciences, such as biology, physics, chemistry and geology. The other group is Computing and Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), a group with 19 courses, including computer science, artificial intelligence and other graduations linked to the digital environment. The third group is engineering, production and construction, with 88 graduations, including architecture and urbanism.
Most women entering 2023, 48% are in the engineering group. Secondly, is the Computing Group, with 43% of freshmen and, finally, the Natural Sciences group, with 9%.
Although the engineers still represent the largest group, the trend, according to the survey, is falling in the number of freshmen. Between 2013 and 2023, there was a 21% decrease in search of the courses of this group. Computer area grew 368% among women. The group of natural sciences, mathematics and statistics also had an increase of 11% in the same period.
According to Francilene Garcia, a greater presence of women, greater diversity and plurality also ensure better scientific results.
“Science will be so much more impactful for human life on earth the more plural and diverse it is. We need to have men and women capable of studying and knowing the phenomena that we live today, the global problems, the local issues, with the balanced presence, ”he argues.
“Diversity and plurality for scientific advances is as transformative as the results that science brings to life in general on the planet.”
