ABSTRACT
This chapter explores cross-national trends in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) degree graduates at the tertiary level from 1998 to 2018 for 143 countries. It focuses on graduation patterns for all tertiary levels precisely because it is a more rigorous measure of the degree to which STEM has opened or failed to open to women. Growth in women’s share of STEM degrees is not mainly a function of increased interest and demand for STEM degrees on the part of women. The association between STEM and male appropriateness may vary across regions, and that may account for why the Middle East and North Africa region (traditional in some respects) may nevertheless be more open to women in STEM. Early policy interventions to boost confidence and interest in students and exposing students to real-life experiences and applications in STEM fields, as well as role models in and outside the classroom, can help attract more young people to STEM fields.
