Gender gap worsening in nearly half of universities worldwide

A report on higher education inequality has found that only 12 countries have an equal number of male and female students participating in higher education.

The report, published by the World Access to Higher Education network (WAHEN) on 28 October 2025, has found that out of the 197 countries with available data, 92 have seen improvements in gender parity and 17 have remained the same.

However, in 88 countries, gender parity has worsened.

Inequalities persist in 190 out of the 202 countries that collect data. Female students are under-represented in 51 countries, while male students are under-represented in 91 countries, in terms of participation.

The report has found that there are continuing issues with female participation

The report concluded: “The countries where female students are most under-represented are in the main from Sub-Saharan Africa. Notable exceptions to this trend are Iraq, North Korea and Afghanistan”.

It continues: “Countries with the highest proportion of female students are drawn from across the world, including Europe (in particular, the United Kingdom) and the Middle East with Qatar and Palestine. Of the 20 countries with the highest proportion of female students, half are from South America and the Caribbean”.

There are also inequalities evident in terms of qualification attainment by gender

Despite the finding that more women participate in higher education than men in most countries around the world, the report has found that there are continuing issues with female participation.

It found: “Female students remain under-represented in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) subjects. Data from the mid-2010s shows that only around 30% of female students enrolled in higher education across the world choose STEM-related fields of study”.

The University of Warwick has a relatively equal balance between male and female students

There are also inequalities evident in terms of qualification attainment by gender. This inequality exists in 184 out of 195 countries with data and affects career prospects after participating in higher education.

In terms of attainment, female students are under-represented in 93 countries, while male students are under-represented in 91 countries.

The report found: “The countries where attainment for female students is the lowest are again in the main sub-Saharan African countries”.

The University of Warwick has a relatively equal balance between male and female students. Statistics on the University’s website reveal that “in 2024/25, 49.9% of students are women, 48.8% men, 0.6% non-binary, and 0.1% ‘other’”.