Infographic: Which States Have The Smallest Gender Gap In STEM?

This post was created by Investmentzen.

Let’s face it ladies, we have a lot of problems these days. From unrealistic standards of beauty to hygiene issues men will never understand, we struggle daily just to be taken seriously. As if the cosmetic and hygiene issues weren’t enough, we also have to face the reality that in the corporate world, it’s a male-dominated circus.

Most professional careers heavily slant towards the men, and frankly, they can keep some of them. There are others, however, that many brilliant young women hold exceptional aptitude and qualification for. Often even more so than many of the men actually getting hired. This gender imbalance clearly shows in STEM fields, where most advanced technical careers vastly under-represent the expertise of brilliant women.

Maybe your state sits on the more progressive end of this gender imbalance, but not one state has achieved equality. Check out the data here, and see for yourself.

Even when a qualified woman does break into her professional field of choice, she runs headlong into the ridiculous gender wage gap. This leaves her often struggling to make ends meet in a field where her male colleagues sit comfortably on their larger salaries. Many professional women even maintain additional part-time work, just to break even with their male counterparts.

More young women by the year graduate with advanced degrees and certifications in highly technical fields, only to face discrimination in hiring practices and pay scales. Is a 401k plan and equal pay really too much to ask? These biases also tragically discourage many brilliant young, female minds from even attempting to pursue advanced professional careers.

Interestingly, the gender gap in STEM occupations seems to show distinctly regional trends. It shouldn’t surprise anyone that the states with the highest gender imbalances also tend toward more conservative, patriarchal cultural views. Utah, for example, shows 4.5 men for every woman in STEM careers. It’s hard to argue with the data, Utah. There clearly exists a social component to this inequality.

Ladies, we’ve come a long way towards equality over the last fifty years, but we have a long way yet to go.

Infographic via: InvestmentZen.com. Featured image via: BestColleges.com