Hidden Bias, Low Expectations, and Social Stereotypes: Understanding Female Students’ Retention in Math-Intensive STEM Fields

The purpose of this qualitative interview-based study is to explore the experiences of female higher education students currently enrolled in math-intensive STEM majors in universities in Kazakhstan and identify the factors that determine their retention and success in STEM education. The lesson from this study is twofold: (1) one compelling reason for women underrepresentation in STEM in traditional contexts is the benevolent discrimination from all sorts of directions (faculty, male peers, and potential employers) resulting from dominant social stereotypes regarding women’s occupation in STEM; (2) universities need to implement measures to overcome hidden biases and stereotypes to improve the retention of females in STEM.