Career Services Has Positive Impact on Outcomes for Women Pursuing STEM Degrees

Using career services has a positive impact on job outcomes for women pursuing careers in the technical fields, according to a joint research project conducted by the NACE and Break Through Tech, an initiative of Cornell Tech.

The research, detailed in The Impact of Career Services on Women Pursuing Tech Careers, found that career services can help level the playing field for women in general and in particular for women pursuing tech careers. Among the study’s key findings:

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• Undergraduate men get more job offers than undergraduate women regardless of whether they use career services, but the use of career services helps narrow the gap between the two groups. (See Figures 1 and 2.)

• When undergraduate women earning STEM-related degrees use career services, they get more job offers than their male counterparts; in contrast, when neither group uses career services, men earning STEM degrees get more job offers. (See Figures 3 and 4.)

Currently, women are underrepresented not only in terms of those pursuing degrees in tech-related fields but in the tech workforce as well. Consequently, the findings also point to the role career services can play in helping tech companies build inclusive workforces.

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The Impact of Career Services on Women Pursuing Tech Careers examines the current landscape for women pursuing careers in technical fields, looks at what can be done to improve their outcomes, and explores best practices aimed at addressing the challenges faced by women pursuing tech careers. The report is free.