Turning the tide in STEM career roadblocks at Synchrony

Despite public and internal corporate support programs, and increased awareness of male/female disparities in the workplace in terms of positions and salaries, women still come up short of equity in tech job placements.

Roughly 26% of tech jobs in the US are held by women, a decrease from about 33% in 2019, according to CompTIA’s 2023 State of the Tech Workforce report. While science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) job opportunities have risen 79% over the past three decades, and are forecast to increase 11% more through 2030, women account for only 16% of those earning a bachelor’s degree in computer and information sciences, according to according to Women Tech Network. Enrollment in college STEM courses has also declined, especially among Black and Hispanic students.

Overall, the men-to-women ratio in tech jobs has declined over the past 35 years, with half the women going into tech dropping out by the age of 35, notes Accenture. Clearly, there is a disconnect between the promise of pursuing a technology career and the reality of the number of women pursuing and maintaining STEM careers.

Minding the workforce gap

Supporting women through all stages in their learning and career development can help reduce this gap. This includes making course content more relevant, improving the educational and cultural climate in classrooms, and restructuring entry-level tech classes to make them more inclusive and less forbidding, notes the Association for Women in Science, a professional organization for women who work in STEM jobs. Companies and IT organizations can also help by providing formal support and mentoring programs, fostering a culture that recognizes and encourages women in tech roles, and collaborating with organizations that offer STEM training and programs to young girls and women.

It’s important to remember that confidence starts young. Synchrony, for example, partners with Girls Who Code, an international nonprofit organization that helps support and increase the number of women in computer science. I have been our Executive Sponsor for the past two years.

We supported Girls Who Code’s summer program, which just completed its eighth session, with skill building opportunities for students aged 18 to 25. In addition to learning valuable skills in areas such as cybersecurity, AI, and NFTs, as well as soft skills like empathy and humanity, summer program participants can meet with Synchrony’s HR managers to discuss future career opportunities both within the company and in the industry.