Where the pipeline begins: how early encouragement opens the door to women in energy careers

As we celebrate this International Women’s Day, we take a look at the critical role that women and girls play in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and the persistent gap that exists in these fields and examine what can be done to change this. More specifically, what can the energy sector do to improve the transition from education to employment within the industry?

Despite progress in education, gender disparities across the energy sector remain acute. The International Energy Agency's (IEA) gender data shows that women comprise only 20% of the global energy sector workforce, despite accounting for 35% of global STEM graduates and 39% of the global workforce. The IEA also notes that there are 76% fewer women than men working in the energy sector — a significant difference from the average 8% gap seen in the total workforce.

The STEM-to-energy gap

A look at how education across the primary, secondary and tertiary sectors shapes access to STEM fields may shed some light on this phenomenon. Research shows that points of divergence begin at a very early age, with STEM stereotypes emerging in primary school as early as age six (Master, A., Meltzoff, A. N., & Cheryan, S., 2021) and continuing through adolescence. Globally, girls perform equally as well as — or better than — boys in mathematics and science at primary and secondary levels, but fewer than half progress to upper secondary education, where STEM specialisation typically begins, creating a structural break in the education to energy pipeline. At tertiary level, approximately 15% of young women pursue STEM degrees vs 35% of young men (UNESCO GEM/UIS, 2018–2023).

However, this isn’t the full story. Women are significantly underrepresented in engineering and energy relevant STEM pathways, despite stronger representation in life and social sciences, thereby directly affecting access to energy-sector technical roles. It becomes something of a vicious circle — the early stereotypes and social norms about ‘belonging’ reinforce careers in fields perceived as more feminine, such as life and social sciences. The UNESCO Global Education Monitoring (GEM) report states that women are more likely to choose fields that are more socially oriented, care-related and community-based due to stereotypes and identity alignment.  

The pipeline for women to progress into careers in the energy sector does exist, albeit at a much lower level, yet the transition from education into employment isn’t happening. As noted above, women account for 35% of STEM graduates, however, they are significantly underrepresented in occupational roles, with 28% in engineering positions (UNESCO GEM report). A 2019 analysis by the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) reported that approximately 30% of women with engineering degrees remain in the industry for up to 20 years, with organisational climate cited as a major factor.

Why the break persists

Data indicates a two stage pattern. First, fewer women choose energy relevant disciplines at university, constraining eligibility for technical roles; second, long term retention is weak, further shrinking the talent pool. Together, these factors create a shortfall at the entry and progression stages that the sector has not offset.

These outcomes are linked to workplace realities documented across recent studies. IEA senior management indicators show that women remain significantly underrepresented in leadership roles across energy subsectors, a trend echoed in sector analyses such as Orennia's 2025 review of workforce demographics. Workplace barriers are very real: according to the Women in Energy Global Study 2025, women in engineering roles cite unsupportive supervisors, exclusionary practices, and inflexible and unsupportive working environments. A sobering point in the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) 2025 report found that almost half of women in renewable energy report some form of gender based discrimination.

The low representation of women in technical energy fields reduces the sector's career appeal, leading to high attrition rates.

From early promise to sustained careers

Addressing this underrepresentation requires targeted action at each stage of the pipeline: early exposure and mentoring; transparent, vocational and university pathways into energy; and workplace practices that improve culture, flexibility and advancement. The programmes listed below illustrate how different actors are already intervening at key junctures:

• UNESCO Crack the Code STEM initiative.
• UNICEF "Girls in Science".
• #1MillionGirlsInStem: A 10-year global campaign, initiated in 2017, to reach 1 million girls (aged 13-18) through STEM education and awareness initiatives.
• Young Women Energized (YWE): Outreach programme of Women’s Energy Network Houston. It inspires and empowers young women to pursue STEM degrees by providing impactful educational and scholarship opportunities.
• SEforALL – STEM Traineeship (since 2023): A targeted traineeship for young women, aligned to in country energy transition projects in Sierra Leone, Ghana, Kenya, and Panama, combining technical and soft skills training with supervised field experience.
• AFS Global STEM Accelerators: A full scholarship programme for girls who are active global citizens and energised to help solve some of today’s biggest global challenges.
• Globalstemwomen.org: Lists worldwide initiatives and programmes.

To improve the transition at every stage, UNESCO suggests that actionable reforms are needed. The key tenets of global cooperation and industry partnerships will boost women’s participation in STEM. Supported by improved mentorship schemes, teacher training and digital skills frameworks, as well as female-led STEM clubs, these specific measures are paramount in ensuring parity for women in the energy industry. 

Breaking down barriers — both cultural and systemic — is the first step in building a reliable pipeline from classrooms to energy careers.