The bar chart compares the number of male and female students studying engineering at Australian universities at ten-year intervals between 1992 and 2012.
Overall, the number of male students decreased slightly over the two decades, while the number of female students rose significantly. Despite these opposing trends, men consistently outnumbered women throughout the entire period, though the gender gap narrowed considerably by 2012.
In 1992, male enrollment stood at its peak of 14,000 students. This figure dropped to 12,000 in 2002 and remained stable at this level through to 2012. Conversely, female enrollment began at a much lower base of just 2,000 students in 1992. However, this number doubled to 4,000 in 2002 and continued to climb, reaching 6,000 by the end of the period.
A closer look at the data reveals a shift in the ratio between the genders. In 1992, there were seven times as many men as women in engineering. By 2012, although men still constituted the majority, the ratio had fallen to exactly two male students for every female student.