Research/Study

The Large Gender Gap in Doctoral Awards in Specific Academic Disciplines

Last week, a WIAReport post showed that the number of doctorate degrees awarded to women at U.S. universities had shown a slight drop from previous years. But the overall numbers hide a continuing wide gender gap in many specific disciplines.

The National Science Foundation recently released its annual data on doctoral degree recipients in the United States. Data for the annual Survey of Earned Doctorates shows that while women have generally closed the gender gap in doctoral degree awards, there are a number of specific disciplines where women continue to lag men in earned doctorates by a substantial margin.

Here are some of the academic fields in 2017 where women earned less than one third of all doctorates awarded:

  • Plasma, high-temperature physics, 11.1%
  • Robotic, 12.4%
  • Geometry, 12.5%
  • Systems engineering, 16.8%
  • Aerospace engineering, 18.0%
  • Condensed matter, low-temperature physics, 18.3%
  • Nuclear engineering, 18.6%
  • Acoustics, 19.6%
  • Computer science, 20.0%
  • Nuclear physics, 20.7%
  • Atomic physics, 21.1%
  • Logic, 22.6%
  • Structural engineering, 24.0%
  • Theology, 24.3%
  • Computational mathematics, 24.5%
  • Theoretical chemistry, 25.0%
  • Astrophysics, 25.0%
  • Biophysics, 25.3%
  • Elementary particle physics, 25.3%
  • Algebra, 25.6%
  • Music theory, 26.1%
  • Atmospheric physics, 26.7%
  • Finance, 28.1%
  • Number theory, 28.3%
  • Bioinformatics, 28.5%
  • Paleontology, 30.0%
  • Applied mathematics, 30.4%
  • Organic chemistry, 30.5%
  • Chemical engineering, 32.2%
  • Agricultural economics, 32.5%
  • Medicinal chemistry, 33.0%

In contrast, there are a number of academic fields where women earned at least three quarters of all doctoral degree awards in 2016. Some examples include:

  • Community psychology, 91.2%
  • Nursing science, 88.0%
  • Developmental, child psychology, 86.4%
  • Speech-language pathology and audiology, 85.3%
  • Behavioral analysis, 81.5%
  • International education, 80.4%
  • Marriage and family therapy, 80.2%
  • Educational psychology, 79.6%
  • Literacy and reading, 79.5%
  • Special education, 79.4%
  • Social work, 78.8%
  • Art history, 77.6%
  • Counseling education, 77.3%
  • French, 77.0%
  • Family and consumer science, 76.9%
  • Anthropology, physical and biological, 75.7%
  • Clinical psychology, 75.6%

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Related Articles

Latest News

Anne Carson Wins the Nobel Prize in Literature

0
Dr. Carson is known for her work in poetry, fiction, and translation. She has taught at several educational institutions throughout Canada and the United States.

Kimberly T. Kostelis Selected to Lead Central Connecticut State University

0
Dr. Kostelis, the new interim president of Central Connecticut State University, has been with the university for more than two decades. For the past five years, she has served as provost and vice president for academic affairs.

California State University Dominguez Hills Extends Interim President’s Contract

0
Mary Ann Villarreal took the helm of CSU Dominguez Hills on January 1, 2026. She will continue to serve as the university's interim president through the 2028–2029 academic year.

Six Women With Academic Ties Named MacArthur Fellows

0
The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation recently announced the 20 latest recipients in its fellowship program, commonly referred to as “genius grants.” Six of the awardees are American women with ties to the academic world.

Report Ranks the United States 47th Among World Nations in Gender Equality

0
Along with 31 other economies, the U.S. has reached 100 percent gender parity in educational attainment. But gender gaps in the U.S. persist in economic opportunity, health and survival, and political empowerment, according to a new report from the World Economic Forum.

Latest Job Listings

Assistant Professor, Jazz

0
The Faculty of Music at the University of Toronto invites applications for a full-time tenure-stream position in the area of Jazz.

Associate Professor, Piano Pedagogy

0
The Faculty of Music at the University of Toronto invites applications for a full-time tenure-stream position in the area of Piano Pedagogy.

Future Faculty in the Physical Sciences Postdoctoral Fellowship

0
We seek to attract a diverse cohort of early career scientists who will conduct research in physics, broadly defined, including astrophysics, biophysics, geophysics, and planetary physics, independently or in collaboration with Princeton faculty, postdoctoral researchers and students.

Director of the School of Dance

0
The College of Fine Arts at the University of Utah invites nominations and applications for a visionary leader to serve as the next Director of its School of Dance.

Assistant Professor of Teaching in Neuroscience in the UCLA Department of Psychology and Undergraduate Neuroscience Interdepartmental Program

0
The UCLA Department of Psychology and the UCLA Undergraduate Neuroscience Interdepartmental Program invite applications for a full-time Assistant Professor of Teaching who will develop and teach courses in Behavioral, Cellular, and Molecular Neuroscience.