Women in STEM Spain: Data, Initiatives and Success Stories

How many women are behind the technology people use every day? In Spain, women are the majority at university, yet only one in five people working as ICT specialists is a woman, and that share has barely moved. The data, initiatives and role models gathered in this article show where the gap opens up and what is working to close it.

It brings together the latest official figures, the programmes promoting STEM careers from the Zona Franca de Barcelona, real career paths of professionals in industry and logistics, and answers to the most common questions.

Women in STEM in Spain: the current picture

STEM covers science, technology, engineering and mathematics: the disciplines behind Industry 4.0, Logistics 4.0 and much of the digital economy. Women are still a minority there, especially in engineering and information technology.

Key figures

• University: in 2023 women made up 28.6% of university students in STEM fields in Spain, with wide differences between branches: close to parity in natural sciences and mathematics, but only 27.1% in engineering and 15.9% in ICT (European Commission Education and Training Monitor 2025, cited in the Spanish Government’s institutional statement for 11 February 2026).
• Employment: across the European Union, women accounted for 19.5% of ICT specialists in 2024, according to Eurostat. In Spain, INE and Eurostat data show a similar pattern: around one fifth of ICT employment.
• Research: women represent around 39.6% of research staff in Spain, but their share falls in senior positions and in business R&D (Científicas en Cifras 2025 report, Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities).
• Entrepreneurship: women were 17% of founders of technology companies in Spain in 2025, the same share as in 2024 (Ecosistema Startup data published by El Referente, October 2026).

Why the gap persists

The gap does not start in the labour market, but much earlier. In the 2023-2024 school year, girls made up 53.7% of all students but only 48.4% of the science track in upper secondary education, according to the Spanish Ministry of Education, Vocational Training and Sport. Stereotypes about “jobs for boys”, the lack of close role models and the low visibility of women already working in technology explain much of the problem, and the gap widens later, in the transition to work and in promotion.

Initiatives that are making a difference

Public administrations, companies and public bodies run programmes to attract and retain female talent. The ones that work best combine inspiration (role models), hands-on training and long-term support: a one-off workshop motivates, but it does not change a career path.

Feel the ZF Power: STEM careers from school

Since 2022 the Consorci de la Zona Franca de Barcelona has run Feel the ZF Power, a programme that brings students aged 10 to 16, and girls in particular, to industrial, logistics and technology companies in the industrial estate. Since the pilot it has reached 770 students, and its fourth edition (2025-2026 school year) plans to add 300 more, with itineraries that include DFactory Barcelona District.

The Women’s Council of the Zona Franca

The Women’s Council of the Zona Franca de Barcelona brings together 26 companies, including SEAT, Aigües de Barcelona and the Port of Barcelona, to promote equality policies in the industrial environment. It celebrated its fifth anniversary in September 2025 at DFactory Barcelona District. Together with Barcelona Woman Acceleration Week (BWAW) and Feel the ZF Power, it is part of the Consorci’s commitment to SDG 5.

The role of innovation ecosystems

Places where companies, start-ups and technology centres come together are a good setting for closing the gap, because they connect talent with real projects. In Barcelona’s industrial innovation ecosystem, gender equality in technology is treated as a competitiveness challenge, not only a matter of social justice.

Success stories: role models leading the way

Data matters, but examples are what inspire. The Zona Franca podcast on SDG 5 features women who lead in highly male-dominated sectors.

From engineering to leadership in the automotive industry

• Anna Sánchez Simó, CEO of Volkswagen Group España Distribución, talks in her episode about the challenges of leading in the automotive industry and the need to inspire new generations towards technology and industrial careers.
• Anabel Andión, manager of SEAT’s Development Prototype Centre, explains in “Women do things differently” how women in the workforce and in management benefit companies.

Logistics and female entrepreneurship

Yolanda Chaparro, Head of Administration at BCL, reviews in her episode the growing role of women in logistics, a sector experiencing a strong rise in employment. At the same time, female talent and entrepreneurship are gaining ground in software, robotics and additive manufacturing, although women founders are still a minority, and incubators play a decisive role by offering space, funding and networks.

How to encourage STEM careers through education

For anyone who leads a team, teaches or wants to help, these levers work:

1. Show close role models, not only distant figures: an engineer from the company next door inspires more than a Nobel laureate.
2. Take students into real companies, as Feel the ZF Power does, so they can see the jobs from the inside.
3. Pay attention to language and teaching materials, avoiding biased examples.
4. Invest in lifelong learning, because technology changes so fast that reskilling is the norm: see More women in STEM: the importance of lifelong learning.
5. Create safe environments where making mistakes is part of learning.

Sustainability is another way in: many women today come to STEM through climate and energy.

Frequently asked questions about women in STEM in Spain

How many women work in STEM in Spain?

It depends on the field. In ICT employment, women make up around one fifth, according to INE and Eurostat. In research the share is higher, close to 40% of research staff, but it drops in senior positions and in business R&D.

Which STEM degrees have the most women?

Natural sciences and mathematics are close to parity. Engineering (27.1% women) and, above all, ICT degrees (15.9%) have the fewest female students, according to 2023 European Commission data.

When does the gender gap in STEM appear?

Before university. Girls are the majority in the education system as a whole, but a minority in the upper-secondary science track and in technical vocational training. That is why programmes working with primary and secondary students are key.

What does the Zona Franca de Barcelona do to support women in STEM?

The Consorci runs Feel the ZF Power, which brings students aged 10 to 16 to companies in the industrial estate; the Women’s Council, with 26 companies; and Barcelona Woman Acceleration Week (BWAW), as part of its commitment to SDG 5.

How can someone move into STEM?

With a short, practical training path, mentoring and real projects that show what has been learned. A second full degree is not necessary: many companies value demonstrable skills more than qualifications.

Conclusion

The STEM gap will not close with good intentions, but with concrete decisions: revised recruitment processes and lifelong learning in companies, careful role models and language in classrooms, and programmes that connect students with real industry.

Female talent is a key part of the new industrial economy. The DFactory Barcelona District ecosystem and its Logistics 4.0 and additive manufacturing incubators are one of the places where that talent is already building the industry of the future.