Nearly 40 per cent of women who earn engineering degrees quit the profession or never enter the field, according to a new US study.
For women who leave their jobs, poor workplace climates and mistreatment by managers and co-workers are common reasons, the study found.
While women accounted for more than 20 per cent of engineering school graduates over the past two decades, only 11 per cent of practicing engineers are women, and only 9 per cent of electronic and environmental engineers are, said Nadya Fouad, of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
She presented the findings from the first phase of a three-year National Science Foundation study in the US that surveyed 5,300 engineering alumnae spanning six decades, mostly from the 30 universities with the highest number of women engineering graduates and from 200 other universities.
While 62 per cent of the women surveyed persisted in their careers as engineers, 11 per cent never entered the field, 21 per cent left more than five years ago, and 6 per cent left less than five years ago.
Among women who left less than five years ago, two-thirds said they pursued better opportunities in other fields while a third stayed home with children because companies didn't accommodate work-life concerns, Fouad said.
Among those who went to other industries, 54 per cent became executives, 22 per cent were in management and 24 per cent worked as staff members.
"These findings are likely to apply to women working in fields where there are less than 30 per cent women. These women are more vulnerable to being pushed out because they typically aren't in the internal 'good old boys' network," Fouad said.
"This may not apply to women working in other professions, but the findings do apply to management practices in all fields in terms of the importance of providing opportunities for training and advancement as well as encouraging a healthy work-life balance," Fouad added.
Women currently working as engineers and those who left less than five years ago showed no differences in confidence to perform engineering tasks, manage multiple life roles or navigate organisational politics, nor did they show differences in vocational interests, the study found.
Women who left engineering more than five years ago said their decision was due to caregiving responsibilities (17 per cent), no opportunities for advancement (12 per cent) and lost interest in engineering (12 per cent).
The research was presented at the American Psychological Association's 122nd Annual Convention in Washington, DC.
