Centre for Education and Youth / EPI / Mission 44 · 2024
This mixed-methods report examines why young people from underrepresented backgrounds — girls, disadvantaged pupils, and certain ethnic groups — are less likely to progress to level 3 STEM qualifications after age 16 in England. Using secondary analysis of the National Pupil Database, statistical modelling, and qualitative interviews and focus groups in schools, the study finds that around one in five pupils completing secondary school between 2016/17 and 2018/19 went on to complete a level 3 STEM qualification, with girls 42% less likely and FSM-eligible pupils 44% less likely than their peers. Prior GCSE attainment is identified as a key driver of these gaps, and while individual schools play a modest role (explaining 6.6% of residual variance), they rarely implement interventions specifically targeting underrepresented groups.