NSF’s NCSES launches this year’s edition of Diversity and STEM

POSTED ON Jan 31, 2023

Hispanic students have made significant advances in earning associate’s degrees in science and engineering fields, according to the latest analysis of diversity trends in STEM employment and education.

The total number of those degrees awarded to Hispanic students tripled between 2011 and 2020, bringing their share of associate’s degrees awarded in science and engineering fields to 32%. Nearly two-thirds (63%) of Hispanics in STEM are in jobs that do not require a four-year degree, making up nearly one-fourth of those workers (24%).

The National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES), which is part of the U.S. National Science Foundation, released the Diversity and STEM: Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities 2023 report on Monday.

Formerly called Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering, the Diversity and STEM report is the first in this series to look beyond careers that require a bachelor’s degree, an educational milestone that reflects only half of the STEM workforce.

“A highlight of this year’s edition of Diversity and STEM is the use of a broader definition of ‘STEM work’, providing a better understanding of STEM representation by different demographic groups,” said NCSES Director Emilda B. Rivers. “For the first time, we count in STEM statistics all groups whose work requires a high level of technical knowledge, regardless of their degree.”

Among the report’s findings:

Bachelor’s degrees in science and engineering fields earned by American Indian and Alaska Native students declined between 2011 and 2020, both in number and as a proportion of all degrees awarded.

Hispanic, Black, American Indian, and Alaska Native STEM workers have lower median earnings than white or Asian STEM workers.

Collectively, Hispanic, Black, American Indian, and Alaska Native people made up 31% of the U.S. population, but 24% of the STEM workforce in 2021. They were more likely to work in STEM occupations that require technical skills or certification than in those that require a bachelor’s degree or higher education.

The report suggests women and Hispanics in particular have made significant progress over the past decade, both in terms of increased representation in the STEM workforce and in their participation in higher education. However, those broad patterns are not universal across all STEM occupations and fields of study.

For example, women make up much smaller proportions of the college-educated workforce in the computer and mathematical sciences, biological sciences, physical sciences, and engineering compared to the social sciences.

Separately, underrepresented minorities make up a third of the workforce in STEM jobs that typically do not require a college degree for entry. However, those jobs tend to have the lowest salaries and highest unemployment in STEM.

About 3% of the STEM workforce are people with disabilities. Although the number of STEM workers with at least one disability increased since 2011, their representation in the STEM workforce has remained unchanged from a decade ago.

Today, the STEM workforce includes 12.3 million women (35% of the STEM workforce), 8.3 million members of underrepresented minority groups (24%), and 1 million people with disabilities (3%).

NCSES will be holding a webinar to discuss the report’s findings on Jan. 31 from 1:30 pm to 3:00 pm. For registration, visit: https://nsf.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_iGPmISgITkiiKzZrJIiMyA