- Sony promotes women in STEM, connecting junior high and high school students with female engineers and university students to inspire careers in science and engineering.
- Scholarship support, offering up to ¥1.2 million per year for six years to science and engineering students who mentor younger students.
- Addressing gender gaps, as only 20.4% of Japanese university entrants in engineering and 32.1% in natural sciences are women, highlighting the need for initiatives like Sony’s to boost female representation in STEM.
Sony Group is taking significant steps to encourage young women to pursue studies and careers in science and engineering. The company is creating opportunities for junior high and high school students to engage directly with female engineers and university students already on the path to careers in these fields. Through these interactions, Sony hopes to convey the excitement of discovery and the unique satisfaction of applying scientific knowledge in real-world settings.
At an event held at Sony Group’s Tokyo headquarters last December, university students shared their personal journeys with high school students interested in science and engineering, discussing what had inspired them to follow this path. One student expressed her passion for continuous learning and being constantly inspired by new discoveries. The event also featured female engineers who spoke about their professional experiences, highlighting the importance of role models in motivating the next generation of women in STEM fields.
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Sony Group’s initiatives are complemented by its scholarship program for science and engineering students, launched in fiscal 2024. Each year, about ten students receive nonrepayable scholarships of up to ¥1.2 million ($7,560) for a maximum of six years. In return, recipients are encouraged to share their enthusiasm for science and engineering with younger students, helping to foster interest and awareness of these career paths.
The push for greater representation of women in STEM education and careers is crucial, given current statistics. According to the Ministry of Education’s 2025 School Basic Survey, women made up 47% of all university entrants but only 20.4% in engineering and 32.1% in the natural sciences. By contrast, 63.8% of entrants were in the humanities. An OECD survey revealed that in 2022, only 7% of women in Japan who advanced to higher education chose STEM fields, far below the OECD average of 15%, marking the lowest rate among member countries.
Experts emphasize that societal expectations and lack of information continue to limit women’s participation in science and technology careers. Hiromi Yokoyama, a University of Tokyo professor studying women in science, stressed that aptitude is shaped by individual differences rather than gender. She warned that underrepresentation in core industries, such as manufacturing, risks losing brilliant minds. Initiatives like Sony Group’s are helping to change that, nurturing the next generation of talented women in science and engineering.
