All data from Engineers Canada and their Canadian Engineers for Tomorrow: Trends in Engineering Enrolment and Degrees Awarded 2004 to 2008 report.
For a printable PDF of a few facts and stats click here.
In 2009, a total of 10,268 female undergraduates were studying engineering in accredited programs. This represents 5.4% percent growth in the absolute number of female undergraduate enrolments compared to 2008, and marks a third consecutive year of growth in the number of young women enrolled across the province. At the same time, the number of male students has increased as well, and the proportion of engineering undergraduates who are female has remained at 17% for the last five years.
Canadian Engineering Enrolment by Gender
This flattening in enrolment of women presents another unknown in a puzzling trend: the proportion of female engineering students increased for a full 10 years, peaking at 20.7% in 2001, and then began to decline. The graph below shows the steady growth of full-time females enrolled in accredited engineering programs throughout Canada from 1975-2000, followed by decline. While progress has certainly been made, females remain underrepresented in these programs. The chart below the graph provides the percentage values illustrated in the graph.
Percentage of Female Undergraduates in Engineering
| Year |
Female
|
Year |
Female |
Year |
Female |
Year |
Female |
Year |
Female |
Year |
Female |
| 1975 |
3.6% |
'91 |
16.1% |
'95 |
18.8% |
'99 |
20.6% |
'03 |
19.2% |
'07 |
17.3% |
| 1980 |
7.9% |
'92 |
16.6% |
'96 |
18.9% |
'00 |
20.4% |
'04 |
18.2% |
'08 |
17.1% |
| 1985 |
10.8% |
'93 |
17.7% |
'97 |
19.3% |
'01 |
20.7% |
'05 |
17.4% |
'09 |
17.4% |
| 1990 |
14% |
'94 |
18.2% |
'98 |
19.3% |
'02 |
19.9% |
'06 |
17.5% |
|
|
The percentages of females in each engineering discipline, for the past three years, are illustrated in the bar graph below. Exact values are provided in the table beneath. While females constitute more than one third of students enrolled in biosystems (39.7%), environmental (38.8%), chemical (34.9%), and geological (33.8%) engineering, they remain extremely low in other areas, most notably in computer (9.5%), software (9.6%), and mechanical (9.7%) engineering.
Canadian Engineering Undergraduates: Female Enrolment by Discipline
|
Discipline
|
2002
|
2003
|
2004
|
2005
|
2006
|
2007
|
2008
|
2009
|
|
Biosystems
|
44.0%
|
43.8%
|
42.3%
|
37.4%
|
35.6%
|
33.0%
|
34.5%
|
39.7%
|
|
Chemical
|
43.5%
|
41.9%
|
40.0%
|
38.2%
|
36.6%
|
36.3%
|
35.5%
|
34.9%
|
|
Civil
|
24.7%
|
23.5%
|
23.8%
|
23.0%
|
22.5%
|
22.3%
|
21.3%
|
21.5%
|
|
Computer
|
13.4%
|
12.4%
|
11.1%
|
9.8%
|
10.0%
|
9.7%
|
9.8%
|
9.5%
|
|
Electrical
|
17.3%
|
16.5%
|
15.0%
|
13.5%
|
12.8%
|
12.3%
|
12.0%
|
12.6%
|
|
Engineering Physics
|
20.6%
|
19.6%
|
19.1%
|
18.1%
|
18.5%
|
17.7%
|
16.5%
|
16.5%
|
|
Environmental
|
44.0%
|
42.1%
|
39.2%
|
35.2%
|
37.6%
|
36.7%
|
36.7%
|
38.8%
|
|
Geological
|
36.1%
|
35.2%
|
33.6%
|
29.3%
|
31.5%
|
31.6%
|
33.1%
|
33.8%
|
|
Industrial or Manufacturing
|
26.2%
|
26.2%
|
24.0%
|
22.4%
|
22.3%
|
21.5%
|
22.0%
|
21.6%
|
|
Materials or Metallurgical
|
24.8%
|
23.2%
|
19.4%
|
20.5%
|
19.6%
|
21.1%
|
21.7%
|
23.0%
|
|
Mechanical
|
14.5%
|
13.4%
|
12.2%
|
11.3%
|
10.9%
|
10.3%
|
10.1%
|
9.7%
|
|
Mining or Mineral
|
18.5%
|
15.3%
|
16.1%
|
16.9%
|
15.9%
|
14.9%
|
14.8%
|
15.0%
|
|
Software
|
17.2%
|
15.1%
|
12.4%
|
9.7%
|
10.2%
|
9.6%
|
10.1%
|
9.6%
|
|
Other
|
18.0%
|
16.7%
|
16.3%
|
17.0%
|
15.4%
|
15.7%
|
15.6%
|
15.2%
|
|
Year One/Two Common Year
|
18.5%
|
18.5%
|
17.8%
|
17.3%
|
20.4%
|
19.0%
|
19.2%
|
20.0%
|
|
Average across Disciplines
|
19.9%
|
19.2%
|
18.2%
|
17.5%
|
17.5%
|
17.3%
|
17.1%
|
17.4%
|
