The European Commission’s latest edition of the “She Figures” provides new data on gender equality in research and innovation in the European Union and beyond.
February was a month marked by the theme of women’s participation and representation in research and innovation. The International Day for Women and Girls in Science (IDWGS), established by the UN General Assembly, took place on 11 February. This annual event aims to promote the full and equal access and participation of women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). February also saw the publication of data showing why the issue remains relevant for EU Member States: The European Commission published the policy report “She Figures 2024 Gender in Research and Innovation: Statistics and Indicators”. As these figures show, women are still under-represented in various research fields and research related sectors.
Since 2003, the “She Figures” publication has provided up-to-date data and analysis on gender equality indicators in R&D and related policy targets. Published every three years, the publication provides policy-makers and stakeholders with empirical evidence and insights for informed and targeted strategies to promote gender equality in R&I. It serves as an empirical basis to identify gaps, disparities, and areas where women remain underrepresented.
As a novelty for the 2024 edition, the European Commission launched the “She Figures Index”. The index measures Member States’ progress toward gender equality in research and innovation using a selection of indicators, which have been maintained since 2003 to track progress over time. Progress in gender equality in research and innovation is measured by indicators covering both higher education and later research career stages. The index distinguishes six key dimensions: segregation in the talent pipeline; research careers and sectors; career progression; representation in decision-making positions; research participation; and the gender dimension in R&I content (GDRIC). Sweden leads this year’s index with an overall score of 87.6, while Luxembourg ranks lowest with 60.1.
While there is a gender balance at doctoral level in most EU Member States, disparities exist across fields. For example, women make up over 60% of doctoral graduates in education, but less than 40% in Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Engineering, Manufacturing, and Construction. Additionally, women’s representation in the STEM fields of Physics and Mathematics, already low, has declined since 2018, a trend also evident in the 2024 figures.
The trend of disparity in STEM fields continues when looking at the presence of women in different professional occupations. Men make up a higher proportion (5%) than women (3.4%) of scientists and engineers (S&E) in the total labour force. Another striking figure from the “She Figures” concerns self-employment in S&E and ICT. Here, women account for only 25% of the self-employed workforce in this sector in the EU. A comparison with previous editions shows that little has changed in this area.
The study’s comparison of the gender balance between sectors also reveals some striking numbers. While women researchers are almost equally represented in the Higher Education (HE) (44%) and Government (GOV) (44%) sectors, their presence in the Business Enterprise sector is significantly lower, at just 22%. Perhaps less surprising, however, is the differing gender balance across sectors when broken down according to different fields. The difference reflects what can already be seen at the level of education: While gender balance has been achieved in the HE and GOV sectors for individuals with a Social Sciences or Humanities background, a systematic underrepresentation persists for women with a background in Natural Sciences (around 30%) and with Engineering and Technology background (around 25%). Despite these disparities, the trend over recent years in the EU shows that the proportion of women researchers has increased in each of the sectors, especially in the Business Enterprise Sector. The study therefore speaks of slow but steady progress towards gender equality in the labour market.
“She Figures” also looks at the working conditions of researchers. It is the declared aim of the EU to make research careers more attractive by improving working conditions (see SwissCore article). In terms of equal career opportunities, the observed differences in international mobility appear to be of key importance. On this issue the data show that women researchers are about half as likely as men to be internationally mobile throughout their careers. However, when it comes to the gender overall earnings gap (GOEG), the figures suggest a slightly higher level of pay equality in science than in the economy as a whole (a 20% gap compared to a difference of 23% for 2018).
The study is not only dedicated to horizontal comparisons across sectors and fields. It also includes figures on gender segregation, which can be observed across all disciplines. “Vertical segregation” refers to the concentration of one gender in ‘top’ positions and is associated with income, prestige and job stability. Here, the figures show an imbalance even in disciplines that typically have a high proportion of women. In the Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, for example, women make up only 34% of this top “grade A staff” (equivalent to a full professorship). A look at the gender ratio of heads of institutions also reveals that women are still under-represented as they account for only 26%.
As Switzerland was not associated to Horizon Europe at the time of writing, it was not included in the statistics of the 2024 “She Figures”. We will therefore have to wait for the next edition to assess Switzerland’s current standing in gender equality in R&I compared to the European Union.