The Latino Donor Collaborative, in partnership with the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE), has released the joint study “U.S. Latinos in Engineering and Tech Report in 2023.”
The report reveals that Latinos are showing increasing engagement and progress in these fields.
According to the Latinos in Engineering and Tech Report, Latinos now make up 9.5% of the engineering workforce, which is below the 19% of Hispanics living in the U.S. as of 2022.
The report also highlights that the growth of Hispanics in engineering education in the U.S. has increased to 15.8%, closer to reflecting the proportion of Latinos in the U.S.
This report also demonstrates that the number of Hispanics obtaining master’s and doctoral degrees in engineering over the last decade has increased significantly.
The percentage of Latinos awarded master’s degrees in engineering grew from 4.2% in 2003 to 9.4% in 2021, more than doubling.
Similarly, the number of engineering doctorates for Hispanics rose from 3.9% to 7.5% in the same period, nearly doubling.
The report emphasizes that the increasing number of Latinos in engineering “counters the imminent shortage in the engineering workforce, which threatens U.S. competitiveness and quality of life.”
Additionally, the report acknowledges the role of SHPE in promoting greater Latino participation in STEM fields.
The study concludes that “U.S. Latinos are prepared to play a critical role in driving growth within engineering, technology, and the fields most exposed to Artificial Intelligence (AI).”
The Latino Donor Collaborative and SHPE also identified factors contributing to the growing number of Latinos pursuing STEM careers, including the importance of role models and mentors.
The study cites that 73% of Latinos consider these role models critical.
Improving the quality of education in STEM fields can help Latinos overcome many obstacles, and raising financial awareness, as well as helping Latinos obtain scholarships to fund undergraduate and graduate education, increases the likelihood of success.
The study also recommends corporate foundations providing increased support for Latino STEM efforts; academia creating more support to help Latinos progress in STEM fields, and the government offering more financial support and incentives to help Latinos succeed in engineering and science.
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