There is a significant lack of women in STEM. Globally, women are under-represented in STEM fields due to deep-rooted gender differences and career expectations, rather than a reflection of ability (OECD, 2017). In the UK, women make up just 14.4% of the STEM workforce (Wise Campaign, 2015). Women Europe-wide are less motivated to study STEM subjects from a young age, due to perceived inequality in the fields (Microsoft, n.d.). Interlinking socio-cultural and economic factors impinge on the quality of girls’ education which impacts their decisions regarding future study and careers in STEM (UNESCO, 2017). This results in low levels of female interest and participation in STEM, and high drop-out rates for those that do choose to pursue STEM education (UNESCO, 2015). The large numbers of women who ‘leak’ out of the STEM pipeline as their career progresses has been labelled the ‘Leaky Pipeline’. This leaky pipeline has been the result of the challenges that women face in the Recruitment, Retention and Progression of their careers (RRP framework- WISE Campaign and EQUALITEC project 2001). This has significant economic and social implications for women having to start a new career (Women’s Engineering Society, 2014) and negatively impacts the EU economy, affecting levels of unemployment and GDP (gross domestic product) (European Institute for Gender Equality, n.d.). There is a strong case for diversity in STEM, as it enables organisations to maximise individual opportunity (CaSE, 2014) and benefit from diverse workforces that increase levels of productivity and creativity (WISE, 2014). Furthermore, employing organisations wishing to attract top talent must diversify and adapt to candidates’ needs, as competition for top candidates increases (Forbes, 2011). This project will address gender disparities in STEM, with a focus on those facing a double disadvantage. The lack of diversity in STEM affects all minority groups. Disabled STEM students are 57% less likely to pursue further study than non-disabled students (CaSE, 2014). There are strong links between low socio-economic status and low participation in STEM (Royal Society, 2008). Just 0.5% of board members in engineering in the UK are black (Women in STEM, 2019). Women in STEM need support at all stages of their career (Amazon HR strategy 2019) but mainly they need support in building their confidence and soft skills to navigate in a male dominated environment. (https://www.personneltoday.com/hr/amazon-unveils-strategy-to-increase-women-in-stem-roles/) The FemSTEM Coaching project aims to bridge the soft skills gender gap in STEM, by providing women with tools and techniques to develop their confidence and soft skills through a combination of online training and peer-support Coaching Circles™, that are framed around the RRP framework. The project objectives are to: - Use the RRP framework to create a comprehensive approach to deliver interventions to address the challenges faced by women during the RRP stages - Develop an E-Coaching programme for women in STEM - Develop a face-to-face peer coaching programme for women in STEM - Increase women’s self-confidence, self-efficacy and develop their soft skills and employability skills To achieve this, there will be three intellectual outputs carried out as part of the project: - IO1 – RRP Framework testing Crucial to this programme will be the incorporation of the RRP framework, to ensure that it addresses the needs of women at all stages of their careers in STEM and adapts the coaching models which will be provided. - IO2 – FemSTEM E-Coaching Programme FemSTEM Coaching aims to tackle the issues facing women in STEM through the creation of a comprehensive E-Coaching Programme, consisting of five modules that will address the most important soft skills for women in STEM - IO3 – Coaching Circles™ The Coaching Circles™ will allow for a more in-depth exploration of the soft-skills development via peer-support to improve self-efficacy. The target group is all women in STEM, however the project will particularly focus on providing support for those facing a double disadvantage, including BAME individuals, those from lower socio-economic backgrounds, older workers, people with disabilities, etc. The platform will enable women to fit what they have learnt into the context of STEM industries, by providing them with positive role models and encouraging them to take the next steps towards their future career in STEM. This project will serve as a tool for women in STEM to use for career development long after the end of the project. The project’s website and platform will exist as a long-standing resource for soft-skill development at all stages throughout women’s careers. The Career Circles™ facilitator’s guide will enable coaches and trainers to facilitate the Circles™ in the future, as this will provide a comprehensive explanation of the methodology and how to deliver them.
The specific project objectives were the following: 1. Use the RRP framework to create a comprehensive approach to deliver interventions to address the challenges faced by women during the RRP stages (output 1). The RRP framework is not widely used and while there are several projects addressing women’s underrepresentation in the STEM sector, there are only few providing such a comprehensive approach. 2. Development of an E-Coaching programme for women in STEM (output 2): The online coaching programme aimed to provide resources and materials to women in STEM to increase their self-confidence and soft skills. 3. Development of a live peer coaching programme for women in STEM (output 3): This programme aimed to provide a safe space for women to reflect on their career progress and work on their goals. 4. The ultimate objective of the 3 outputs and the whole project was to increase women’s self-confidence, self-efficacy and develop their soft skills and employability skills in the STEM sector.
Women are underrepresented in the STEM sector and many of them ‘leak’ out of the STEM pipeline as their careers progress. This has been the result of the challenges that women face in the Recruitment, Retention and Progression of their careers (RRP framework- WISE Campaign and EQUALITEC project 2001). This has significant economic and social implications for women having to start a new career (Women’s Engineering Society, 2014) and negatively impacts the EU economy (European Institute for Gender Equality, n.d.). There is a strong case for diversity in STEM, as it increases levels of productivity and creativity (WISE, 2014). The gender stereotypes that men are better in STEM subjects than women undermine women’s confidence to pursue a career in STEM (Stansbury, 2013). Therefore women have lower self-efficacy related to STEM subjects (Tellhed et al, 2017; Gjersoe, 2018). The FemSTEM partnership gathered in 2019 to address women’s underrepresentation in the STEM sector and focus on supporting their self-efficacy and self-confidence. Coaching was found as an effective tool to enhance confidence building (Theeboom, 2013). Therefore, the FemSTEM project used coaching models to foster the confidence and soft skills of women in STEM.