Entrepreneurship among Women in STEM

Berna Demiralp for the National Women’s Business Council

First published March 2017

Commissioned by the National Women’s Business Council and prepared by BD2, LLC and RTI International, On the Commercialization Path: Entrepreneurship and Intellectual Property Outputs among Women in Stem presents an examination of innovation among women in STEM fields by identifying gaps in their entrepreneurial outcomes and highlighting future opportunities for policy improvements.

First, it presents results of a descriptive data analysis using data from the 2015 American Community Survey (ACS) and U.S. Census Bureau’s 2007 and 2012 Survey of Business Owners (SBO). Second, the report examines prior research and policy literature related to women’s entrepreneurship and commercialization outcomes in STEM fields. Together, the literature review and data analysis identify and explore important themes related to women in STEM, including the prevalence of STEM entrepreneurship among women, the role of STEM education in STEM entrepreneurship, characteristics of owners and firms that are actively engaged in STEM entrepreneurship and their commercialization outcomes. Finally, the report discusses policy recommendations related to the women’s education, entrepreneurship, and commercialization in STEM.