Women in Stem industries Fewer than 1 in 4 believe they have support to succeed

When Ms Wan NurSabrina Wan Nasarudin signed up for a mechatronics engineering diploma course in Nanyang Polytechnic after her O levels, her relatives and friends were stunned.

- Stephanie Yeo

"Some of them said things like: 'Will you be able to cope in engineering?'" she says.

Influenced by the gender stereotypes she grew up with, she had initially wanted to pursue accounting and business, following in the footsteps of her mother, a corporate secretary in her 50s. But when she missed the cut-off point for the course, her choices were limited to engineering, nursing and outdoor education.

"Relatives, acquaintances and even teachers suggested I should have enrolled in a 'more feminine course' like nursing, claiming I was better suited for a nurturing role," says Ms Sabrina, 29.

She did not just survive her diploma course - she also found her calling in Stem, which stands for the disciplines of science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

She holds a master's of science degree in robotics and artificial intelligence from the University of Glasgow in Scotland. She is also the first recipient of the PPIS-LBKM Scholarship, which was launched in 2023 by the Singapore Muslim Women's Association and bursary and scholarship institution Lembaga Biasiswa Kenangan Maulud, for women pursuing postgraduate studies in Stem and other selected fields.

Now an assistant manager in the National University Health System's Artificial Intelligence Office, her work involves digital twin simulations of the National University Hospital to test scenarios involving robots.

"The challenges, innovation, problem-solving and hands-on nature of robotics engineering have provided a satisfaction I couldn't have anticipated when reluctantly accepting my course," she says, crediting her mother and father, a marine superintendent in his 50s, for their unstinting support. She is married to a 32-year-old software engineer and they are expecting their first child in August.

Stem careers are growing at a furious pace, tech layoffs notwithstanding. Yet women still make up less than half that workforce.