Mind the gender gap: the impact of university education on the entrepreneurial entry of female and male STEM graduates

Abstract

Women are consistently underrepresented among graduate entrepreneurs. This is especially true among the entrepreneurs who graduate in STEM fields. Here, we aim at identifying factors that reduce/enlarge the gender imbalance in entrepreneurship among STEM graduates. In particular, we explore the underinvestigated association between university education in STEM fields and entrepreneurial entry of recent female and male graduates considering graduates’ whole university curriculum. Our analyses on the graduates who obtained a Master of Science degree in the 2005–2009 period from Politecnico di Milano reveal that training in economics and management reduces the gender imbalance in entrepreneurial entry among STEM recent graduates. The gap is instead larger among the graduates who attended courses that aggregate students from different STEM fields or did an internship.

Plain English Summary

University education affects the gender gap in entrepreneurship among STEM graduates! Attending courses aggregating students from multiple STEM programs and doing internships enhance this gap, while training in economics and management reduces it. Women are severely underrepresented among STEM graduate entrepreneurs. Our study investigates the relationship between university education in STEM fields and entrepreneurial entry of recent female and male graduates. Using data on 13,840 graduates who obtained a Master of Science degree in the 2005–2009 period from Politecnico di Milano, we find that attending courses in economics and management reduces the gender imbalance in entrepreneurial entry among STEM recent graduates. The gap is instead larger among the graduates who attended courses aggregating students from different STEM fields or did an internship. Our study offers important implications for university managers, as it helps them design university curricula in STEM fields that may be more conducive to female entrepreneurial entry.