The determinants of occupational choice are considered to be highly diversified as described in section 1.2. Hence, the question of occupational choice is discussed for different subgroups. The group of women in STEM has received significant attention in the academic and political discussion. Occupations in science, technology, engi- neering and mathematics always have been and still are strongly dominated by men. This gender segregation has not been effected by women’s educational achievements since the 1980s.
During the last thirty years there has been a striking reversal in the gender gap of ed- ucational attainment. Today girls perform better in school and receive higher school leaving certificates on average. Additionally, more university degrees are awarded to women nowadays (see Helbig (2010) for Germany, Buchmann and DiPrete (2006) for the U.S.). Girls and boys show also nearly similar performance in mathematics and science during school (see OECD (2010) for Germany, Hyde et al. (2008) for the U.S.). Despite of all these developments women keep on avoiding jobs in STEM.
Figure 1.3 illustrates the reversal of the gender gap in education as well as the on- going segregation in STEM for Germany and for the EU. On the one hand, women outnumber men among university graduates since several years. On the other hand, the graph illustrates for several STEM subfields that women keep on lagging behind in STEM university degrees. This trend is visible for Germany as well as for the EU. However, the trend is more distinct in Germany: only about every fifth degree in the fields of engineering, manufacturing and construction is awarded to a female student in Germany. In the EU, every third graduate in STEM is female. Legewie and DiPrete (2012) find a similar pattern for the United States. The fields of mathe- matics and statistics have an exceptional trend in Germany: girls have nearly gained similarity to boys in this subject recently. However, the increase in the number of girls studying mathematics is not visible for the EU or in other countries.
28 1. Determinants and Outcomes of Occupational Choices – A Survey All Fields Mathematics/Statistics Physical Science Engineering/Manufacturing/Construction Computing 0 1 1.5 0.5 Odds Ratios 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 Year Europe All Fields Mathematics/Statistics Physical Science Engineering/Manufacturing/Construction Computing 0 1 1.5 0.5 Odds Ratios 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 Year Germany
Source: Eurostat, own calculations.
Note: The trend line for all fields shows the odds ratio that a university degree is awarded to a woman. The lines for the different subfields show these female/male odds ratios for the respective STEM field.
Figure 1.3.: Gender Gap in University Degrees Awarded by Field of Study in the EU and Germany, 1998-2010.
Similar results are found for the vocational training in the German education sys- tem. On the one hand, boys choose apprenticeship training positions in STEM like mechatronics technician, electrician or motor mechanic most frequently. Girls, on the other hand, prefer commercial apprenticeships or other apprenticeships in the tertiary sector. These patterns in occupational choice are constant over time (see Statistisches Bundesamt (2003, 2006, 2011a)).
The enduring gender gap in STEM has negative implications for the supply of highly skilled workers in these occupations as well as for the closing of the gender pay gap (see Bettio and Verashchagina (2009), EUCOM (2010)). Therefore, the ongo- ing debate why girls and young women do not choose occupations in STEM given the extraordinary good earning possibilities and career opportunities will remain. Reasons for this phenomenon are broadly discussed. Special focus is layed on the
1. Determinants and Outcomes of Occupational Choices – A Survey 29
question whether biology or socialisation is responsible for the ongoing segregation in STEM fields in particular and the labour market in general.10
Several studies in educational science focus on girls’ choice of college majors. Leslie and Oaxaca (1993) provide an overview of early theoretical and empirical studies on this topic conducted during the 1990s. In these studies, the focus of attention is on the United States. Several results, however, can be taken for granted by now: Leslie et al. (1998) find that having a parent who works in engineering or science increases girls’ probability to choose engineering or science as a major in college. The importance of family background is also found by Jackson et al. (1993): they show that girls who have well-educated parents enter male-dominated STEM fields more often. The same is true for young women coming from intact families. Jackson et al. (1993) also point out that women who become engineers do not simply tend to have fathers who are engineers, but also tend to marry engineers themselves. So, parental background seems to be germane for young women’s choice of STEM occupations.
Furthermore, some empirical work suggests that, regarding the fields of STEM, oc- cupational choices as well as the choice of college majors can only be influenced during high school years or earlier. Legewie and DiPrete (2012) show that the at- tendance of a high school that supports the orientation of girls towards mathematics and science reduces the gender gap in STEM majors by one fourth. The authors observe that the gender gap in educational attainment has closed and girls perform equally well in mathematics as their male peers. However, the overall gender gap in STEM degrees still exists. Legewie and DiPrete (2012) emphasize the importance of schooling environment for gender-specific orientation towards these fields of study. The authors suggest further research in the shaping of gender stereotyping during high school for a better understanding of occupational segregation. Leslie et al. (1998) emphasize as well that the attitudes of peers have an important influence on adolescents’ choices. They find that, during adolescence, girls are more mind-
30 1. Determinants and Outcomes of Occupational Choices – A Survey
ful of what their peers think of them than boys. Girls are taught by peers during these years that childbearing and marriage are the goals to be committed to. The influence of peers seem to be one reason for a decrease in interest in science and mathematics during these years (see Leslie et al. (1998)). Similar results are found by Holland and Eisenhart (1990).
Only little research is devoted to the labour market behaviour of women in STEM. The small number of existing studies implies that women in STEM behave differently in terms of labour supply than women in general. The overall differences between women and men can also be found when analysing occupations in STEM. Minks (1996, 2001) show that women who graduate from STEM tend to search longer for their first jobs and tend to earn less than their male fellow students. Similar results are found by studies that concentrate on later-on careers (see Haffner et al. (2006)). Schlenker (2009a) shows that female engineers face employment interruptions be- cause childbearing more often. Female engineers also tend to work part time or outside their subject area more often than their male counterparts (see Schlenker (2009a,b)).11 However, even if differences in employment and wages exists between female and male engineers, female engineers’ labour supply is larger than (highly skilled) women’s labour supply on average – probably because of higher wages (see Schlenker (2009b)).