In 2017, American women are still underrepresented in some of the highest paying jobs out there — specifically, jobs in science, technology, engineering and math. The situation is even worse for women of color. It doesn’t have to be this way. With the right encouragement early on in life, young women can explore careers in STEM and ultimately break through the industries that have been previously dominated by men.
This is exactly why we at PayScale decided to team up with Ignite Worldwide to host an annual STEM day at PayScale HQ to help local young women get introduced to what it might be like working in technology as a career. Recently, we invited 24 young women from Chief Sealth International High School for a full day of hands-on learning and creativity, all while getting introduced to different careers in the technology industry ranging from web development to data analytics.
The day was a success. And being the data-minded folks that we are, we decided to survey our attendees to see if STEM day had a positive impact on their career outlook. It turns out that when you introduce young girls to STEM early on, it makes a difference. Eighty-six percent of the girls who attended our event said they are more interested in learning about STEM now.
Tell Us What You Think!
Do you think introducing young women to STEM is important? We want to hear from you! Comment below or join the discussion on Twitter!
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