This survey sought to explore the barriers and incentives for women pursuing careers in STEM.

Some key findings include:

• A third of women (31%) on a career break within our chosen sample are either

  ‘somewhat’ or ‘very’ likely to consider applying for a role in the nuclear sector.

• Flexible working is a key criterion for women seeking to re-enter work in STEM. When asked about which statement most closely aligns with how respondents felt about entering/re-entering a job in STEM, four in ten women selected ‘I would prefer a job that allowed for a good degree of flexibility, such as home working or flexible hours’ (40%).

• Similarly, 65% of respondents selected flexible working hours as the most important policy when considering whether or not to apply for a role in the energy sector.

• One third (33%) of respondents cited having children as a reason for going on a

  career break, and one in five (21%) respondents cited needing a mental health

  break.

• Two-thirds of those on a career break left work within the last three years (66%). This leaves a significant portion of women (35%) who may otherwise face larger barriers for re-entering careers in STEM due to being out of work for longer than three years.

• More than three in four women currently on a career break are looking to return to

  work within the next 12 months (77%).

• Almost one in two (49%) respondents who have a STEM qualification and

  previously had a STEM career selected that they were ‘very unlikely’ to consider a

  role in the nuclear sector, suggesting that roles in the sector attract polarising

  rather than more moderate views.

• When it comes to helping women on a career break apply for a role in the energy

  sector, companies do not need to reinvent the wheel. The two most popular factors

  that influence their decision to apply for a role are flexible working hours (65%)

  and hybrid working arrangements (44%).