Black Women and Latinas in STEM: A Systematic Review of Literature

This systematic review of literature examines scholarly studies conducted on Black women and Latinas in STEM fields and in STEM higher education. Women are underrepresented in STEM, and on average they comprise 27% of the STEM population (National Science Foundation, 2017). Black women and Latinas are even further underrepresented in STEM by making up only 14.58 % and 3% of the employees in STEM industries (Hispanic Heritage Foundation, 2020; National Science Foundation, 2021). Barriers for all women are the focus of much of the body of literature in STEM (Beach et al., 2024; Moore, 2024). Isolating specific challenges Black women and Latinas face in academia and the workforce is critical to the attraction, retention, and promotion of these two cohorts (NASEM, 2022, Ong et at., 2011). Being at the intersection of race and gender (Crenshaw, 1989), many of the injustices Black women and Latinas face are much worse relative to their White counterparts (Borum & Walker, 2012; Valenzuela, 2020; Wilkins-Yel, 2022; Yosso et al., 2009). It is the goal of this systematic review to shed light on the nature of literature that focuses on Black women and Latinas in STEM. Compounding the issue is that Black women and Latinas are also underrepresented in STEM academia where research typically takes place (Kachchaf et al., 2015; Krebsbach, 2022; Lee et al., 2023; Moore, 2024). There are fewer role models for female students, and this scarcity is particularly pronounced for these two groups of women. It is the goal of this study to highlight what researchers have discovered regarding these two populations. This systematic review will analyze 30 studies, 15 focused on Black women and 15 concentrate on Latinas. The inclusion and exclusion criteria for each are stated in the methodology section. The studies under review can be qualitative or quantitative and need to be conducted in the past decade, 2015-2025.