The share of women working in research and development at science and technology research institutions was tallied at 23.7% last year. That was up 0.6 percentage points from the previous year, continuing a gentle rise over the past five years.
The Ministry of Science and ICT and the Korea Foundation for Women In Science, Engineering and Technology (WISET) said on the 23rd they published the report of the 2024 survey on the utilization of women in science and technology, targeting 5,138 science and technology research institutions nationwide.
The survey was conducted from June to September last year, with a reference date of Dec. 31, 2024. Those surveyed were 271 science and engineering universities, 222 public research institutes, and 4,645 private-sector corporate research institutes with 100 or more employees.
According to the report, the share of women employed in research and development in 2024 was 23.7%. After rising steadily from 21.5% in 2020 to 21.8% in 2021, 22.7% in 2022, and 23.1% in 2023, it continued to increase last year. By institution type, science and engineering universities were highest at 30.0%, followed by public research institutes at 26.5% and private research institutes at 19.5%.
Among newly hired research and development personnel last year, women accounted for 31.9%, up 0.3 percentage points from the previous year. Compared with 28.1% in 2020, that was 3.8 percentage points higher. By institution, public research institutes were highest at 38.6%, science and engineering universities were 32.7%, and private research institutes were 28.2%. In particular, in private research institutes, the share of women among new hires was found to have increased by 7.3 percentage points over the past five years.
However, in areas of responsibility and decision-making within organizations, the share of women remains low. The share of women in managerial posts was 13.1%, up 0.3 percentage points from the previous year, and the share of women promoted also rose 0.3 percentage points to 19.1%. Women accounted for 13.3% of all principal investigators, up 0.7 percentage points from the previous year. Overall, the trend is improving, but it was confirmed that the share remains in the 10% range for key positions and leadership roles.
Meanwhile, 92.3% of institutions operated legally mandated systems such as maternity leave, prenatal checkup leave, parental leave, spousal paternity leave, and guaranteed nursing time. Institutions operating voluntary systems such as infertility leave, general leave, nursing facilities, substitute personnel, flexible work, remote and work-from-home arrangements, and lounges was found to be 57.0%.
Although the operation rate of legally mandated systems already remains above 90%, voluntary systems stayed relatively low. However, the share of institutions operating voluntary systems increased from 47.0% in 2020 to 55.5% in 2023 and 57.0% in 2024, expanding by 10.0 percentage points over the past five years.
Lee Jun-bae, director general of future talent policy, said, "In an era of population decline, science and technology personnel are the core of national competitiveness, and in particular, the continued growth and career expansion of women in science and technology is an essential task to safeguard Korea's innovation capacity," adding, "The Ministry of Science and ICT will continue to support women in science and technology so they can play active roles and deliver results across diverse fields."