The Top 5 Women's Colleges With the Best STEM Programs
Despite earning nearly 60% of the Bachelor’s degrees awarded by U.S. institutions, female graduates still lag behind men when it comes to STEM degrees. Women make up less than half of Bachelor’s degrees in STEM, and that percentage drops further for degrees like computer and information sciences and engineering. After graduation, women fill half of all U.S. jobs, but hold only 27% of STEM positions.
As job opportunities in STEM fields continue to grow, it’s more important than ever that women feel supported in their education and confident in pursuing a future STEM career. Women’s colleges are uniquely positioned to increase the number of women in STEM fields and can be a great resource for companies recruiting STEM talent for their entry-level roles.
At a women’s college, students experience a supportive and safe environment they may not find at a traditional college, in addition to access to research opportunities, mentoring, and other resources. Though only 32 women’s colleges remain in the U.S. (according to the Women’s College Coalition), this kind of distinct environment should not go unnoticed. Women’s colleges often graduate well above the national average of female STEM students, making them an invaluable resource for companies to incorporate into their recruiting strategy. While all women’s colleges can be a great resource for campus recruiting teams, these five schools have excellent STEM programs that consistently produce top talent.
Barnard College
Location: New York, NY
Size of undergraduate student body: 3,043
Type of school: Private
Barnard ranks 18th on U.S. News' top liberal arts colleges and provides extensive resources for all their STEM department students. They offer special advisors, help rooms, funds for summer research, and numerous student orgs. Since its launching in 2013, Barnard’s Summer Research Institute (SRI) has helped students in the College’s science programs to become involved in immersive, fully funded, ten-week research experiences. They also now have an Accelerated 4+1 Pathways program for students interested in combining an undergraduate liberal arts education at Barnard with a master's degree at one of the world's preeminent research universities, Columbia University. Some of their notable alums include Jacqueline K. Barton, a pioneer in the study of DNA structure, and Linda Laubenstein, an HIV/AIDS physician and researcher.
Bryn Mawr College
Location: Bryn Mawr, PA
Size of undergraduate student body: 1,780
Type of school: Private
Bryn Mawr has such a strong dedication to STEM education that it was the only women’s college named as one of the top 25 schools responsible for the greatest advancements in science. Every summer, over 50% of Bryn Mawr's science students conduct summer research projects supported by the university. While doing their research, students can also participate in professional development workshops and receive mentorship from faculty. Since 2012, Bryn Mawr has participated in “The Posse Foundation” program that seeks out 10 students each year who are interested in pursuing STEM to receive full tuition scholarships. This program is in place to find students that are otherwise overlooked in the college application process, mostly from underrepresented communities. With such a strong dedication to STEM, it’s no surprise that Bryn Mawr has graduated with many accomplished mathematicians and scientists. Some alums who have made strides in STEM include Mina Bissell, a biologist focused on breast cancer research, Joan Slonczewski, a prominent microbiologist and science fiction writer, and Katharine Burr Blodgett, a famous physicist who worked for General Electric.
Smith College
Location: Northampton, MA
Size of undergraduate student body: 2,924
Type of school: Private
Smith has been impressively ranked #13 overall for liberal arts schools in the country by U.S News. At Smith, 40% of students major in a STEM program, and 50% of STEM professors are women. They have a state-of-the-art science facility, housing 19 different majors and equipped with eight research centers. In 2007, they launched the AEMES program to help recruit students from historically underrepresented backgrounds and first-generation students into their STEM programs. Students can receive peer mentoring, attend a summer bridge program, and experience leadership opportunities. Smith also has an advising center focused on helping STEM students prepare for their career goals and collect the skills they need to achieve them. Some of their notable alums include Pearl Yau Toy, a physician and professor of laboratory medicine, Ng’endo Mwangi, Kenya’s first woman physician, and Victoria Chan-Palay, neurobiologist.
Spelman College
Location: Atlanta, GA
Size of undergraduate student body: 2,417
School type: Private
Spelman places a strong focus on supporting its STEM students. On average, 34% of their students pursue a degree in a STEM major. It’s notable that their staff is made up of 83% racial minorities and 52% women. As a Historically Black College and University (HBCU), Spelman offers a uniquely supportive and encouraging atmosphere to help Black women succeed. They also offer a program, G-STEM, to give students the opportunity to get real-world research experience while living in a different country. Students are paired with a mentor and placed into a research lab or field experience and come back as more competitive candidates for their job search.
Spelman also helps students get ahead for their future with the RISE program, which allows underrepresented students to participate in biomedical research training. This program, funded by the National Institutes of Health/National Institute of General Medical Sciences, helps students strengthen their applications and stand out to top-tier Ph.D. programs. Some notable STEM alums of Spelman College include Evelynn Hammonds, the Chair of the Department of the History of Science at Harvard, Janet Bragg, the first African-American woman to hold a commercial pilot license, and Audrey Manley, the first Black woman to serve as acting Surgeon General of the United States.
Wellesley College
Location: Wellesley, MA
Size of undergraduate student body: 2,461
Type of school: Private
Wellesley is rated 5th in the top national liberal arts colleges by the U.S. News and World Report and has a renowned STEM program. The most popular majors on campus are in the STEM fields, such as biology, research and experimental psychology, computer and information science, and neuroscience. Wellesley also partners with MIT if students want to pursue a B.A. degree from Wellesley and an S.B. (B.S.) degree from MIT. Wellesley’s notable alumni include Pamela Melroy, a NASA astronaut, Annie Jump Cannon, an astronomer, Nergis Mavalvala, a prominent astrophysicist, and Erna Schneider Hoover, an inventor, scientist, and engineer.
These schools are helping to increase the number of highly-qualified women in STEM and can also serve as a great resource for employers. By including these colleges in your recruiting strategy, you can establish a direct source of high-caliber entry-level STEM talent and ensure you have a gender-balanced candidate pipeline.
Learn about top schools for women in different majors in our guide to recruiting outside of the Ivy Leagues here.
