Human Resources committee  No, I don't think it's a funding issue. I think it's more how women perceive science and engineering and the fact that there are few role models. Natural sciences and engineering make up a very broad field. There is a high proportion of women in biology—about 60% of the people in that field are women—but when you get to computer science or engineering, the numbers go down to less than 30%, and sometimes 20%, so even within our fields, it's a very varied situation.

Human Resources committee  The cost in science and engineering is the same as the cost in social sciences and humanities. The numbers are growing in other sectors within academia.

Human Resources committee  There are some countries where there are no tuition fees. Europe has a tradition of not having any tuition fees. It's free for anyone who wants to go to university. Is tuition a factor? It might be. It's certainly not the only factor.

Human Resources committee  We have not looked at that element.

Human Resources committee  Besides their specific knowledge and expertise, they need communications skills, project management skills, an ability to work in interdisciplinary teams, an ability to work across boundaries and sectors, and business skills. They need the ability to prepare business plans. If you have young scientists who are ready to go and start their own businesses, they need to write business plans.

Human Resources committee  There are certainly some. I'm not sure how many or what proportion do. It's hard to pin down. It's very difficult to get those accurate numbers.

Human Resources committee  Enrolment is decreasing in computer science. It's not increasing in engineering. Those are highly valued skills. I'm a biology graduate, and when I was doing my bachelor's degree, one of my teachers told the class that science leads to anything. Sometimes you have to venture into different fields.

Human Resources committee  We try to increase the capacity in all of the fields, because in one way or another, all the natural sciences and engineering can lead to high-value positions and innovation for the country. The oil fields would tend to be looking for engineers, people with chemistry backgrounds, and even environmental scientists.

Human Resources committee  They need geologists, exactly.

Human Resources committee  They need biologists, as well. Really, they need a mix of different skills.

Human Resources committee  There is what is referred to as the “leaky pipeline”. There are more women getting bachelor's degrees than there are getting master's degrees. We then lose some at the transition from master's to doctorate. We lose some more from doctorate to post-doctorate, and more still from post-doctorate to university professors.

Human Resources committee  The percentage is about 22%. It has been pretty stable—18%, 20%, 22% for almost 20 years. It has moved up, but very slowly.

Human Resources committee  Yes. Not having many role models at the faculty level is one of the factors that is not necessarily encouraging more young women to pursue careers later on. Yes, we have a leaky pipeline. We lose them from grade 12 to university, and then at all of the points throughout.

Human Resources committee  At NSERC, no, there isn't. We have very small programs. We have a program that funds five women. It's called the chairs for women in science and engineering. We have one of those chairs in each region: Atlantic, Quebec, Ontario, the Prairies, and Vancouver. Their role is very much outreach.

Human Resources committee  I don't have that number off the top of my head, but it's more than half. Fewer than half of the Ph.D. graduates go on to careers in an academic setting. That leaves all of the other sectors with more than half of the graduates.