The pandemic saw a surge of women entering STEM. Now employers risk squandering it.

Girls taking Computing A level are up 149% since 2019. Women in IT roles have grown 61%. And 27.2% of the UK's STEM workforce is now female, higher than at any point before the pandemic. Six years on from COVID-19, WISE's new report reveals what shifted, and why it could still unravel.

A crisis that changed everything

When COVID-19 hit, STEM moved to the centre of public life overnight. Scientists became household names. Professor Dame Sarah Gilbert, co-developer of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, was watched by millions. A generation of girls saw, perhaps for the first time, what a career in science could look like.

The data suggests they took notice. Women's share of the STEM workforce rose from 23.6% in December 2019 to an all-time high of 27% by September 2022. There was a dip as restrictions lifted - burnout, delayed life plans, the urgency gone - but the gains largely held. Women now make up 27.2% of all STEM roles in the UK, above any pre-pandemic level.

WISE is publishing this analysis STEM after COVID-19 six years on from the WHO's pandemic declaration, during British Science Week, to ask: what caused the shift, what sustained it, and what could reverse it?

Key figures at a glance

• 27.2% of UK STEM roles are currently held by women, putting us well on track for the 30% target by 2030
• Girls' A level entries up across every STEM subject since 2019: Physics +23%, Further Maths +26%, Computing +149%
• Women in IT Professional roles up 61% since 2019
• Postgraduate Computing enrolments by women up 259% since 2019
• 79% of female STEM students would turn down a fully on-site job offer

The pipeline is stronger than it has ever been

The educational data is striking. Girls are taking STEM A levels in greater numbers across every subject - not just in traditionally female-dominant areas like Biology, but in subjects where they have been historically underrepresented. Computing is the standout: girls' A level entries have risen 149% since 2019, from 1,475 to 3,679.

This is feeding through to higher education. Women's undergraduate Computing enrolments are up 55% since 2019; postgraduate enrolments have risen 259%. Women are earning more STEM higher education qualifications year-on-year across all core subjects.

Crucially, we are only just beginning to see the pandemic's full educational impact. Students whose GCSEs and A levels were disrupted by COVID-19 are graduating and entering the workforce for the first time in 2025 and 2026. The wave has not yet fully broken.

Flexible working as a baseline, not a benefit

Not only did COVID-19 reshape who enters STEM, it also reshaped what the next generation expects from STEM employers. Remote and hybrid working, born of necessity during the pandemic, have become non-negotiable for the women now entering the sector.

Research by STEM Women found that 67% of female STEM students expect their first role to be hybrid, and 79% say they would turn down a fully on-site position. For employers accustomed to framing flexible working as a perk, this is a significant recalibration: it is now a baseline condition of employment.

Laura Norton, Managing Director of WISE, said “the pandemic put science and tech at the heart of public life, and women and girls responded. The pipeline is stronger than it has ever been. The question now is whether employers will do what it takes to keep these women in the field. Without real action on culture, progression and flexibility, this progress will stall.”

The retention risk employers are not talking about

The post-pandemic dip, in which women's STEM workforce share dropped from 27% to 25.2% within a year of restrictions lifting, is a warning that progress is not self-sustaining. Science and engineering saw the most severe falls, with some areas dropping below pre-pandemic levels as emergency funding was cut and research cycles normalised.

Women with technical skills are among the most sought-after professionals in the economy. The organisations that fail to retain them will lose individual talent, as well as ground to competitors who have built cultures where women can progress, lead, and stay.

WISE is calling on employers to move beyond intent. Hybrid working helps, but it is not enough on its own. WISE is urging organisations to collect and act on workforce data, build genuinely inclusive cultures, invest in progression and development programmes, and treat retention, not just recruitment, as a strategic priority.

ENDS

Notes to Editors

About WISE:

WISE celebrates more than 40 years of history, dating back to 1984 when the Engineering Council collaborated with the Equal Opportunities Commission to launch Women into Science and Engineering (WISE). Since then, WISE has evolved to support the wider STEM sector in its mission to enable and promote the participation, contribution and success of women.

WISE utilises its equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) expertise to provide organisations with guidance, resources and training that improve productivity, innovation and business performance. By championing diversity of thought, background and life experience, WISE works to ensure that STEM is inclusive for everyone.

In 2025, WISE became fully integrated into the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), and the campaign is now managed as part of the IET Charity. The WISE mission and vision remain the same: to deliver programmes, products and services that support women in STEM.

Media enquiries to:

Sarah Jenkins
External Communications and PR Lead
E: sarahjenkins@theiet.org

Spokespeople available for interview:

• Laura Norton, Managing Director, WISE - available to speak to the data, employer action, and the retention challenge.
• Young women working in STEM - a network of professionals available to speak to lived experience and retention first-hand. Contact us for specific profiles and areas of expertise.

Data sources

Workforce data

All workforce data has been analysed using Nomis Labour Market Statistics¹.
For the full list of SOC 2020 codes used, see the WISE SOC code guide².

¹ https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/query/select/getdatasetbytheme.asp?theme=28
² https://www.wisecampaign.org.uk/mp-files/wise-soc-2020-codes-for-annual-population-survey-analysis.pdf/

Higher Education data

Higher Education data is sourced from HESA’s Higher Education Student Statistics (2026) and is used to understand the subjects studied at undergraduate and postgraduate level, including all courses covered by the Higher Education and Research Act 2017.
https://www.hesa.ac.uk/news/27-01-2026/sb273-higher-education-student-statistics

A level data

A level data is provided by JCQ⁴.
https://www.jcq.org.uk/exam-results/