An Open Letter to the World – Women in STEM
- Malavika Ram
- Nov 28, 2020
- 3 min read
Written by Malavika Ram
Edited by Jeeya Mahajan
Photography by Leilani Rose Taulahi
Elizabeth Blackwell, the 1st woman in America to receive a medical degree, famously said, ‘If the present arrangement of society will not admit of women’s free development, then the society must be remodelled.’
I have always been raised to think that I can be anything I chose to be and there is no such a thing as a girl's job or boy’s job; that it’s possible to reach the sun, moon and the stars (literally) if that’s what I want to do with my life. Science, I continue to be told, holds the key to a country’s progress which has encouraged me to look at taking up a career in this is direction. As a student who’s about to take the bold step of making her career choice and specialization stream, it bothers me to think that women are still underrepresented in subjects I hope to make a future in. So, while the story may seem overstated, I feel like we need to continue the conversation.
So how much progress have we really made?
Just simply google it and you’ll be bombarded with a plethora of research trends. While women occupy half the world’s population, 49.58% to be precise, (World Bank, 2019) from a gender representation perspective, the figures show the sad truth of gender gap in science.
Women still account for less than a third (29.3%) of those employed in scientific research and development (R&D) across the world as on 2016. The share significantly drops when it comes to women of colour
Even for a country like US, despite accounting for over half of the college-educated workforce of the world, women made up only 29% of those employed in science and engineering occupations in 2017
Female students and employees are under-represented in STEM-related fields.
Less than a third of female students choose to study higher education courses in subjects like math and engineering
Women working in STEM fields publish less and often receive less pay
I need not be told that Math is a tough subject for girls or that girls should take up something more creative. We don’t need any more stereotyping in this world than what already exists. Throughout history, women have risked everything in the name of science. Gender equality in science is vital to the world reaching the UN sustainable development goals. We simply cannot be the minority any more.
With so few women in some STEM careers, girls have fewer role models to look up to. Because there are only very few of us out there, we indirectly contribute to making entry into STEM more difficult, male–dominated, and exclusive. Research shows that if girls had as many role models of women inventors as boys do to male inventors, the gender gap in innovation could be cut to half. As Mae Jemison, the first black female astronaut to travel in space once said – ‘Dream Big!’
I sign off jubilant in reading the latest news announced on Gulf News today exactly at 5.33 pm, GST time – An Indian-American Female doctor identified possible COVID- 19 treatment. Dr. Thirumala-Devi Kanneganti, a researcher working at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Tennessee, has discovered a potential strategy to prevent life threatening inflammation, lung damage and organ failure in patients diagnosed with COVD-19.
Us girls have to push ourselves. If you like it, go for it. Don’t live the stereotypes, and don’t conform to the gender norms. We can go far, if we just try.
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