Interests and Recruitment in Science - Factors Influencing Recruitment and Retention in STEM Education at University Level in Pakistan

Oct 15, 2026

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Study under the IRIS collaborative research project supported by the European Commission (7th Framework) examines factors that shape university students’ selection of STEM subjects and their retention in higher education in Punjab, Pakistan. Seven major factors are analyzed using a structured IRIS-Q questionnaire focused on students completing their first year in STEM in public sector universities. School experience, fathers’ role, and learning endeavours are highlighted, while media and technology show no significant influence. Significant gender differences appear in perceptions related to self-efficacy, satisfaction, and future opportunities.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages25

Reading Time1 h 3 min

AccessFree to download

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Interests and Recruitment in Science: Factors Influencing Recruitment and Retention in STEM Education at University Level in Pakistan Riffat-un-Nisa Awan *, Muhammad Sarwar**, Munim Mehdi***, Ghazala Noureen**** and Nadeem Anwar***** Abstract This study has been carried out as a part of the IRIS, which is a collaborative research project, supported by the European Commission (7th Framework program) . It intends to identify the factors involved in the choice of STEM subjects by the university students of the Punjab. Seven major factors has been discussed which play role in the choice and retention of students in STEM areas in higher education. These factors include impact of school experience, personal choice of students, importance of subject area, experience as student in the subject, expectations of everyday life, educational status of students in the subject and priorities for future. This study also digs out the gender mean difference in the choice of subject. A structured questionnaire IRIS-Q was used containing items regarding the influence of various factors for the choice of STEM subjects. Only those students were the part of study that had completed their first year of education in any area of STEM in the public sector universities of the Punjab. Results indicated that school experience was identified as an important factor for the selection of STEM subjects. Among the family and relatives the role of fathers was prominent in the choice of STEM areas. The role of media and technology had no significant role to motivate the students to choose the subjects. Students’ learning endeavours played effective role for the retention of students in STEM areas. Future priorities like job security had been identified as major factor for retaining in STEM subjects. The study explored that *Associate Professor, Department of Education, University of Sargodha, Sargodha, Pakistan. Email: [riffarukh@gmail.com](riffarukh@gmail.com). ** Professor, Department of Education, University of Sargodha, Sargodha, Pakistan.*** Sqn. Leader, PAF College, Sargodha. ****Assistant Professor, Division of Education, University of Education, Lahore, Pakistan. *****Assistant Professor, Department of Education, University of Sargodha, Sargodha, Pakistan. there was significant gender difference among the perception of respondents in their selfefficacy, personal satisfaction and future opportunities. It was recommended that the attention of all other stakeholders should be drawn to foster STEM education in Pakistan. Keywords: Interests, recruitment, science, factors, retention, education Introduction STEM is widely used acronym for four separate disciplines of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (Kennedy & Odell, 2014) . The enrolment of students in STEM subjects has been a topic of research for last two and half decades. The number of publications about STEM especially regarding factors influencing STEM enrolment is increasing exponentially (Yu, Chang, & Yu, 2016) . Need of competent and skilled workforce within STEM disciplines is vital to meet the challenges the world facing these days (Lynch, Behrend, Burton, & Means, 2013; Reis, Patrocínio,& Lourtie, 2012) . The provision of workforce in STEM areas depends on the enrolment of students in the STEM courses, which is affected by different factors. The factors include past experiences with the subjects, media images of STEM graduates, future priorities, social/family influence, success expectancy, achievement level and gender of the student. The question why less number of females opt STEM subjects needs deep digging out into causes and cures. The present study intends to explore the experiences, considerations, and priorities, on which youth base their educational choices in STEM and to explore gender differences between the factors effecting the selection of, and retaining in, the STM subjects by students at university level using IRIS framework (Interests-and-Recruit

FAQs

What is the main purpose of the study?

The study identifies factors influencing how university students in Punjab choose STEM subjects and how those factors relate to student retention in STEM areas.

Which factors were found to be important for choosing and retaining STEM students?

School experience was identified as important for selecting STEM subjects. Students’ learning endeavours supported retention, and future priorities such as job security were major for retaining students in STEM.

What did the study find about gender differences?

The study reports significant gender differences in respondents’ perceptions, including self-efficacy, personal satisfaction, and future opportunities regarding STEM subject choice and retention.

Oct 15, 2026

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