Understanding the Data Sources

This analysis draws on comprehensive federal data to investigate the gender, racial, and ethnic diversity in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. Notably, the workforce analysis utilizes figures from the U.S. Census Bureau’s decennial censuses and American Community Survey data, organized by the Integrated Public Use Microdata Series (IPUMS) from the University of Minnesota.

The assessment of STEM degrees available is based on information from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) and the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) Completions survey, ensuring that various educational institutions adhere to reporting regulations for federal financial aid programs.

Representation Gaps in STEM

Despite the growth in STEM jobs, Black and Hispanic workers continue to be underrepresented compared to their total workforce proportions. For instance, Hispanic individuals represent 17% of the general workforce, yet only account for 8% of STEM occupations. This underrepresentation persists across all sectors within STEM, particularly in rapidly growing fields such as computing.

Similarly, Black workers constitute 11% of the overall workforce but only 9% of those employed in STEM, with pronounced disparities in specific areas like engineering and architecture, where their representation is as low as 5%.

Gender Disparities in STEM

Women’s representation in STEM varies significantly across various fields. While women constitute nearly three-quarters of the workforce in health-related jobs, their numbers dwindle in engineering and computing roles—only 15% and 25% represent these sectors, respectively.

Overall, while women now earn the majority of undergraduate and advanced degrees, their participation in STEM-specific programs such as engineering and computer science remains notably low. For instance, women earned just 22% of bachelor’s degrees in engineering and 19% in computer science as of 2018.

STEM Workforce and Educational Outcomes

As of 2019, approximately 19.1 million U.S. workers aged 25 and older were employed in STEM occupations. The educational backdrop reveals that individuals in these fields are substantially more likely to have attained a bachelor’s degree or higher—with nearly 67% of STEM professionals holding such qualifications compared to just 34% in other occupations.

However, demographics remain an area of concern. For example:

• Hispanic workers represent only 8% of all computer roles.
• Black workers’ share in engineering jobs continues to stagnate at 5%.
• Overall, female representation in STEM jobs remains uneven, with marked variations across different occupational clusters.

Potential for Future Diversity Growth

The outlook for diversity within STEM fields correlates closely with education representation. Despite increases in the number of STEM graduates, projections indicate that significant changes to workforce diversity are unlikely in the immediate future. The challenges remain pronounced as institutions seek to bolster representation among underrepresented racial and ethnic groups.

Analysis shows that while STEM degree attainment has increased—growing 62% from 2010 to 2018—the disparities persist, especially among Black and Hispanic students. For example:

• Black students earned 7% of STEM bachelor’s degrees compared to 10% of all bachelor’s degrees.
• Hispanics earned only 12% of STEM degrees, despite comprising a larger segment of the total college-graduate population.

Conclusion

As the demand for STEM professionals continues to rise—with projected job growth far outpacing non-STEM fields—addressing the gaps in gender and racial/ethnic representation is imperative. With ongoing efforts to enhance diversity, the future of the STEM workforce can shift towards a more inclusive environment that reflects the broader population yet more robustly.