Belonging and Persistence in STEM: Experiences of Female Students in UAE Higher Education

Despite significant national investments in STEM education and women’s empowerment in the United Arab Emirates, women remain unevenly represented and retained across STEM pathways, particularly in male-dominated disciplines. While existing research often emphasizes access and enrollment, less attention has been paid to the student-stage experiences that shape women’s decisions to persist in STEM fields and envision long-term STEM careers. This project addresses this gap by examining how professional belonging, mentorship exposure, classroom and laboratory climate, and perceived gender bias influence female STEM students’ intentions to remain in STEM pathways in UAE higher education. Using a mixed-methods research design, the project combines a large-scale survey of female STEM students across UAE universities (n= 450–600) with in-depth qualitative interviews (n= 25–30). The quantitative component will assess the relationship between institutional support, gendered learning environments, professional self-efficacy, and persistence intentions using multivariate statistical models. The qualitative component will provide deeper insight into how female students interpret everyday academic and professional interactions such as group projects, lab work, internships, and advising relationships and how these experiences shape their sense of belonging in STEM fields. The intellectual significance of the project lies in shifting the analytical focus from access-based explanations to experiential and relational mechanisms of gender inequality in STEM at the student stage. By foregrounding women’s lived experiences, the study contributes to gender and STEM scholarship, higher education research, and organizational studies. Societally, the project aligns with UAE national priorities on women’s empowerment, human capital development, and innovation-driven growth. Findings will generate evidence-based recommendations for universities and policymakers seeking to strengthen gender-inclusive STEM education, support women’s persistence in STEM pipelines, and enhance the long-term sustainability of national STEM initiatives locally, regionally, and globally.