Learning Experiences of Female University Students in stem Fields: A Systematic Review
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.22201/iisue.20072872e.2026.50.2039Keywords:
women’s education, STEM education, higher education, gender equality, social inclusionAbstract
STEM education is essential for driving innovation and economic growth, and addressing global challenges. This research aims to analyze the learning experiences of women in STEM in higher education. This systematic review followed PRISMA guidelines and used bibliometric techniques and the PEO strategy, including 15 empirical articles from Scopus, Web of Science, JSTOR, and Education Source via EBSCOhost. The results show that the most effective learning JSTOR use an intersectional approach that integrates rigorous content with inclusion strategies, validates student identity, and acknowledges nonlinear trajectories in traditionally masculinized fields. Four emergent categories were identified: identity and belonging, role models and mentoring, inclusive and collaborative pedagogies, and educational interventions and strategies.
Downloads
References
Beroíza-Valenzuela, Francisca y Natalia Salas-Guzmán (2024), “STEM and gender gap: a systematic review in WoS, Scopus, and eric databases (2012-2022)”, Frontiers in Education, vol. 9, pp. 01-10, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2024.1378640>.
Bian, Lin, Sarah-Jane Leslie y Andrei Cimpian (2017), “Gender stereotypes about intellectual ability emerge early and influence children’s interests”, Science, vol. 355, núm. 6323, pp. 389-391, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aah6524>.
Block, Katharina, Antonya Marie Gonzalez, Toni Schmader y Andrew Scott Baron (2018), “Early gender differences in core values predict anticipated family versus career orientation”, Psychological Science, vol. 29, núm. 9, pp. 1540-1547, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797618776942>.
Borooah, Vani y Colin Knox (2024), “Inequalities in undergraduate participation and performance in Irish higher education”, Higher Education Quarterly, vol. 78, pp. 656-679, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1111/hequ.12476>.
Botella, Carmen, Silvia Rueda, Emilia López-Iñesta y Paula Marzal (2019), “Gender diversity in stem disciplines: a multiple factor problem”, Entropy, vol. 21, núm. 1, p. 30, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.3390/e21010030>.
Bottia, Martha Cecilia, Elizabeth Stearns, Roslyn Arlin Mickelson, Stephanie Moller y Ashley Dawn-Parker (2015), “The relationships among high school STEM Learning experiences and students’ intent to declare and declaration of a STEM major in college”, Teachers College Record, vol. 117, núm. 3, pp. 1-46, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1177/016146811511700308>.
Braun, Virginia y Victoria Clarke (2006), “Using thematic analysis in psychology”, Qualitative Research in Psychology, vol. 3, núm. 2, pp. 77-101, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa>.
Breiner, Jonathan M., Shelly Sheats Harkness, Carla C. Johnson y Catherine M. Koehler (2012), “What is STEM? a discussion about conceptions of stem in education and partnerships”, School Science and Mathematics, vol. 112, pp. 3-11, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1949-8594.2011.00109.x>.
CIMAD-IPADE-Movimiento STEM (2020), Mujeres eligiendo carreras STEM, <https://movimientostem.info/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Mujereseligiendo-carreras-STEM-%E2%80%93-MovimientoSTEAM-%E2%80%93-CIMAD.pdf>.
Cobreros Vicente, Lucía, Jorge Galindo y Teresa Raigada (2024), Mujeres en STEM: Desde la educación básica hasta la carrera laboral, EsadeEcPol-Center for Economic Policy, <https://www.esade.edu/ecpol/es/publicaciones/mujeres-en-stem/>.
Cohen, Susie, Zahra Hazari, Jonathan Mahadeo, Gerhard Sonnert y Philip M. Sadler (2021), “Examining the effect of early stem experiences as a form of stem capital and identity capital on STEM identity: a gender study”, Science Education, vol. 105, pp. 1126-1150, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1002/sce.21670>.
Collins, Melissa, Joanna Totino, Ardice Hartry, Valeria F. Romero, Rosio Pedroso y Rosalinda Nava (2020), “Service-learning as a lever to support STEM engagement for underrepresented youth”, Journal of Experiential Education, vol. 43, núm. 1, pp. 55-70, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1177/1053825919887407>.
Crispín, María, Melisa Esquivel y Marcela Loyola (2011), “Factores relacionados con el aprendizaje”, en María Crispín (coord.), Aprendizaje autónomo: orientaciones para la docencia, Universidad Iberoamericana, pp. 29-48.
Davis, Raeshan, Leyte Winfield, David Spivak y Zakiya Wilson-Kennedy (2022), “Role of international research experiences in the development of women of color in chemistry”, Journal of Chemical Education, vol. 99, núm. 1, pp. 104-112, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jchemed.1c00518>.
Díaz, Brayan, Daniela Luengo-Aravena, Pia Barahona y Patricio Felmer (2025), “Assessing the impact of online collaborative problem solving on a calculus class for first-year engineering students: a communities of practice lens”, Journal of Engineering Education, vol. 114, núm. 1, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1002/jee.20622>.
Dou, Remy, Zahra Hazari, Katherine Dabney, Gerhard Sonnert y Philip Sadler (2019), “Early informal stem experiences and STEM identity: the importance of talking science”, Science Education, vol. 103, núm. 3, pp. 623-637, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1002/sce.21499>.
Dou, Remy, Eric Brewe, Justyna P. Zwolak, Geoff Potvin, Eric A. Williams y Laird H. Kramer (2016), “Beyond performance metrics: examining a decrease in students’ physics self-efficacy through a social networks lens”, Physical Review Physics Education Research, vol. 12, núm. 2, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.12.020124>.
Edwards, Erica y Natalie King (2023), “Girls hold all the power in the world’: cultivating sisterhood and a counterspace to support stem learning with black girls”, Education Sciences, vol. 13, núm. 7, p. 698, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci13070698>.
Fuesting, Melissa y Amanda Diekman (2017), “Not by success alone: role models provide pathways to communal opportunities in STEM”, Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, vol. 43, núm. 2, pp. 163-176, DOI: .
González-Pérez, Susana, Miryam Martínez-Martínez, Virginia Rey-Paredes y Eva Cifre (2022), “I am done with this! Women dropping out of engineering majors”, Frontiers in Psychology, vol. 13, núm. de artículo 918439, pp. 1-20, <https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.918439>.
González-Rogado, Ana Belén, Ana Belén Ramos- Gavilán, María Ascensión Rodríguez-Esteban y Alicia García-Holgado (2025), “Perception Disparity between women and men on the gender gap in stem at a Spanish university”, Revista Iberoamericana de Tecnologías del Aprendizaje, vol. 20, pp. 1-11, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1109/RITA.2024.3522255>.
Hernández, Ismael y Cinta Espuny (2022), “Estudios stem y la brecha digital de género en bachillerato: la influencia de la competencia digital en el futuro académico”, edutec Revista Electrónica de Tecnología Educativa, vol. 81, pp. 55-71, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.21556/edutec.2022.81.2601>.
Herrera-Franco, Gricelda, Gina Peña-Villacreses y Lady Bravo-Montero (2025), “Women’s participation in the research development of a country”, International Journal of Educational Research Open, vol. 8, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedro.2024.100413>.
King, Natalie y Rose Pringle (2018), “Black girls speak stem: counterstories of informal and formal learning experiences”, Journal of Research in Science Teaching, vol. 56, núm. 5, pp. 539-569, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.21513>.
Lyon, Louise Ann y Emily Green (2021), “Coding boot camps: enabling women to enter computing professions”, ACM Transactions on Computing Education, vol. 21, núm. 2, p. 14, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1145/3440891>.
Madkins, Tia y Karisma Morton (2021), “Disrupting antiblackness with young learners in stem: strategies for elementary science and mathematics teacher education”, Canadian Journal of Science, Mathematics and Technology Education, vol. 21, pp. 239-256, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1007/s42330-021-00159-1>.
Marco-Bujosa, Lisa, Lois Joy y Rachel Sorrentino (2020), “Nevertheless, she persisted: a comparison of male and female experiences in community college stem Programs”, Community College Journal of Research and Practice, vol. 45, núm. 8, pp. 541-559, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1080/10668926.2020.1727382>.
Marsh, Herbert W., Brooke Van Zanden, Philip D. Parker, Jiesi Guo, James Conigrave y Marjorie Seaton (2019), “Young Women Face Disadvantage to Enrollment in University stem Coursework Regardless of Prior Achievement and Attitudes”, American Educational Research Journal, vol. 56, núm. 5, pp. 1629-1680, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.3102/0002831218824111>.
Martín-Peciña, María, Antonio Quesada, Ana M. Abril y Marta Romero-Ariza (2025), “Breaking barriers to unleash stem futures by empowering girls through mentorship in summer camps”, Education Sciences, vol. 15, núm. 2, p. 242, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15020242>.
Masjutina, Svetlana y Elizabeth Stearns (2025), “A qualitative investigation of the influences of gender among low-socioeconomic status students’ motivations to study biology”, International Journal of stem Education, vol. 12, núm. de artículo 7, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1186/s40594-025-00531-9>.
ONU Mujeres (2025), Ciencia sin límites: Ana Gracia Guerra y su misión de inspirar a nuevas generaciones, <https://lac.unwomen.org/es/stories/noticia/2025/02/ciencia-sin-limites-ana-garcia-guerra-y-su-misionde-inspirar-a-nuevas-generaciones>.
Page, Matthew J., Joanne E. McKenzie, Patrick M. Bossuyt, Isabelle Boutron, Tammy C. Hoffmann, Cynthia D. Mulrow, Larissa Shamseer, Jennifer M. Tetzlaff, Elie A. Akl, Sue E. Brennan, Roger Chou, Julie Glanville, Jeremy M. Grimshaw, Asbjørn Hróbjartsson, Manoj M. Lalu, Tianjing Li, Elizabeth W. Loder, Evan Mayo-Wilson, Steve McDonald, Luke A. McGuinness, Lesley A. Stewart, James Thomas, Andrea C. Tricco, Vivian A. Welch, Penny Whiting y David Moher (2021), “Declaración PRISMA 2020: una guía actualizada para la publicación de revisiones sistemáticas”, Revista Española de Cardiología, vol. 74, núm. 9, pp. 790-799, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1016/j.recesp.2021.06.016>.
Patiño-Cuervo, Daniela, Diana Pineda-Caro, Aura Torres-Torres y Oscar Pulido (2022), “Producción científica sobre educación stem en Latinoamérica: un estudio bibliométrico”, Praxis, vol. 18, núm. 2, pp. 278-304, DOI: <http://doi.org/10.21676/23897856.3787>.
Plata-Balderas, Dania, Rocio Mayorga-Ponce y María Sánchez-Padilla (2022), “Elementos para formular una pregunta de investigación”, Educación y Salud. Boletín Científico Instituto de Ciencias de la Salud Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Hidalgo, vol. 11, núm. 21, pp. 87-88, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.29057/icsa.v11i21.9681>.
PRISMA (2020), PRISMA flow diagram, prisma Statement, <https://www.prisma-statement.org/prisma-2020-flow-diagram>.
Rankin, Yolanda, Jakita O. Thomas y Sheena Erete (2021), “Black Women Speak: Examining Power, Privilege, and Identity in cs Education”, ACM transactions on computing education, vol. 21, núm. 4, pp. 1-31, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1145/3451344>.
Roberts, Thomas, Christa Jackson, Margaret J. Mohr- Schroeder, Sarah B. Bush, Cathrine Maiorca, Maureen Cavalcanti, D. Craig Schroeder, Ashley Delaney, Lydia Putnam y Chaise Cremeans (2018), “Students’ perceptions of STEM learning after participating in a summer informal learning experience”, International Journal of stem Education, vol. 5, núm. 35, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1186/s40594-018-0133-4>.
Rockinson-Szapkiw, Amanda, Kathryn Sharpe y Jillian Wendt (2022), “Promoting self-efficacy, mentoring competencies, and persistence in STEM: a case study evaluating racial and ethnic minority women’s learning experiences in a virtual stem peer mentor training”, Journal of Science Education and Technology, vol. 31, pp. 386-402, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1007/s10956-022-09962-3>.
Rodriguez, Idaykis, Geoff Potvin y Laird H. Kramer (2016), “How gender and reformed introductory physics impacts student success in advanced physics courses and continuation in the physics major”, Physical Review Physics Education Research, vol. 12, núm. de artículo 020118, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.12.020118>.
Salinas, Maria, Dora Vega, Alicia Chávez y Eduardo Vilchez (2025), “Access and opportunities for Peruvian women in stem fields in the Latin American context: a systematic review”, Edelweiss Applied Science and Technology, vol. 9, núm. 2, pp. 826-841, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.55214/25768484.v9i2.4614>.
Sevilla, María, Daniela Luengo-Aravena y Mauricio Farías (2023), “Gender gap in stem pathways: the role of secondary curricula in a highly differentiated school system —the case of Chile”, International Journal of STEM Education, vol. 10, núm. de artículo 58, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1186/s40594-023-00450-7>.
Signorella, Margaret y Lynn Liben (2024), “Perceptions of skills needed for stem jobs: links to academic self-concepts, job interests, job gender stereotypes, and spatial ability in young adults”, Journal of Intelligence, vol. 12, núm. 7, p. 63, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.3390/jintelligence12070063>.
Singer, Allison, Georgina Montgomery y Shannon Schmoll (2020), “How to foster the formation of stem identity: studying diversity in an authentic learning environment”, International Journal of stem Education, vol. 7, núm. de artículo 57, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1186/s40594-020-00254-z>.
Siwale, Kaluwa y Gwamaka Mwalemba (2023), “Societal influences on career decision making: Perspectives of African women pursuing technology-related professions”, The Electronic Journal of Information Systems in Developing Countries, vol. 89, núm. 4, núm. de artículo e12259, pp. 1-17, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1002/isd2.12259>.
UNICEF (2023), Inclusión de mujeres, niñas y adolescentes en el ámbito de la ciencia y la tecnología “central para el desarrollo sostenible de México”, México, <https://www.unicef.org/mexico/comunicados-prensa/inclusi%C3%B3n-de-mujeres-ni%C3%B1as-yadolescentes-en-el-%C3%A1mbito-de-la-ciencia-yla>.
Vargas Jiménez, Monserrat y José Gabriel Domínguez Castillo (2026), “Perspectivas teóricas sobre las brechas de género en los campos de stem”, ie Revista de Investigación Educativa de la rediech, vol. 17, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.33010/ie_rie_rediech.v17i0.2606>.
Vargas Sánchez, Darwin Leonardo y Álvaro García-Martínez (2021), “Educación STEM, un campo de investigación emergente: análisis bibliométrico entre 2010-2020”, Investigações em Ensino de Ciências, vol. 26, núm. 3, pp. 195-219, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.22600/1518-8795.ienci2021v26n3p195>.
Verdugo-Castro, Sonia, María Cruz Sánchez-Gómez y Alicia García-Holgado (2022a), “Opinions and perceptions about STEM studies in higher education: an exploratory case study in Spain”, Education in the Knowledge Society, vol. 23, <https://revistas.usal.es/tres/index.php/eks/article/download/27529/28262?inline=1>.
Verdugo-Castro, Sonia, Alicia García-Holgado y María Cruz Sánchez-Gómez (2022b), “The gender gap in higher stem studies: a systematic literature review”, Heliyon, vol. 8, núm. 8, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e10300>.
Wieselmann, Jeanna, Gillian H. Roehrig y Justine N. Kim (2020), “Who succeeds in stem? Elementary girls’ attitudes and beliefs about self and stem”, School Science and Mathematics, vol. 120, núm. 5, pp. 233-244, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1111/ssm.12407>.
Wineinger, Troy, Mary D. Fry y E. Whitney G. Moore (2022), “The influence of instructor behaviors and the perceived motivational climate on undergraduate students’ experiences in college stem laboratories”, CBE Life Sciences Education, vol. 21, núm. 4, pp. 1-12, <https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.21-07-0184>.
Wrighting, Diedra M., Jamie Dombach, Mike Walker, Jenene Cook, Marlina Duncan, Gisselle Velez Ruiz, Adán Colón-Carmona y Bruce Birren (2021), “Teaching undergraduates to communicate science, cultivate mentoring relationships, and navigate science culture”, CBE Life Sciences Education, vol. 20, núm. 3, pp. 1-15, <https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.20-03-0052>.
Yu, Wenhao, Jiaqi He, Julan Luo y Xiaoyan Shu (2023), “Interventions for gender equality in stem education: a meta-analysis”, Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, vol. 40, núm. 6, pp. 2558-2573, DOI: <https://doi.org/10.1111/jcal.12928>.
Zepeda, Olga y Gina Villagómez (2021), “Mujeres estudiantes de ingeniería: Una revisión sistemática de Iberoamérica”, Revista Innovaciones Educativas, vol. 23, núm. 35, <https://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/articulo?codigo=8494806>.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Universidad Autónoma de México
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
