Education & Career
(BPT) - Careers in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) are growing and quickly. By 2023,
STEM will generate a projected 2.6 million new jobs, creating a high demand for qualified employees with
STEM backgrounds in the coming years, according to Georgetown Public Policy Institute's Center on
Education and the Workforce.
Despite attractive career opportunities for the next generation of STEM workers, the industry continues to
be predominantly male. Women make up only 24 percent of the STEM workforce, the U.S. Department of
Commerce reports.
Several programs nationwide are working to close the gender gap by encouraging participation among
female students in STEM projects, activities and lessons early on in their education. DeVry University's
HerWorld is one such program. Its mission is to educate high school girls about STEM-related fields and
connect them with real-life role models.
Throughout March, designated National HerWorld Month by DeVry University, thousands of young women
will interact with their peers, learn from experienced women in high-visibility STEM careers, and
participate in confidence-building activities and hands-on workshops at HerWorld events across the country.
"HerWorld was created 17 years ago to fill a need for programs that support and develop high school girls'
interest in STEM," says Dr. Donna M. Loraine, provost/vice president of academic affairs at DeVry
University. "While we have made great progress, our focus for HerWorld today is to encourage girls'
interest in these subjects in high school and beyond by connecting them with mentors who can show them
that careers in STEM are challenging but realizable."
One-third of women who enter STEM bachelor's degree programs after high school switch their major to a
non-STEM field by the time they graduate, according to a study by the U.S. Department of Education and
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April 2014
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