Women Role Models: Leading Today the Science That Will Inspire the Girls of Tomorrow

Equal opportunities in science and entrepreneurship depend not only on access to education, but also on the visibility of leadership. When women occupy positions of influence, they broaden the professional horizons of girls and young women and strengthen the ecosystem as a whole.

In Spain, women represent the majority of university students. In the 2023–2024 academic year, women accounted for 57% of undergraduate students, 56% of master’s students, and 50% of doctoral program students. However, this majority presence does not subsequently translate into scientific leadership.

In 2023, only 39.6% of research staff were women, and their presence in leadership positions remains limited, as only 27% hold rector positions and just 34% perform managerial roles. Likewise, 40.9% of full-time internal R&D staff in public and private sector companies were women, but this figure drops to just 31.2% within companies, where they represent barely one in three employees.   

This inequality in access to strategic positions is not limited to the scientific field; it is also reproduced within the entrepreneurial ecosystem. The intention to start a business is practically equivalent between women and men, at 9.0% and 9.2% respectively. However, the conversion of that intention into established projects declines when structural barriers arise, such as more limited professional networks, reduced access to capital, or lower representation in technological sectors. 

Only 8.1% of projects led by women reach medium-high technological levels, and 23.5% operate without digital technologies. In addition, the unequal impact of family responsibilities limits their willingness to take risks, scale initiatives, and gain visibility at key stages of growth.

Persistent gaps

Differences in outcomes are not due to lower levels of preparation or lack of ambition. They stem from how opportunities, resources, and recognition are distributed within the scientific and entrepreneurial system.

Access to funding is one of the most determining factors. In the scientific field, women submit 46.1% of funding applications, with a success rate of 43.1%. In the case of grants aimed at promoting the recruitment of research staff, the success rate falls to 32.9%, compared to 43.35% for men. In addition, 52.1% of female researchers perceive that the allocation of tasks and opportunities depends on subjective criteria, which affects access to higher-impact projects.  

In entrepreneurship, women start their businesses with an average capital of €45,039, compared to €227,794 for men—five times less capital. They also have less access to private investment and rely more frequently on family funding or public grants. This gap limits their ability to take risks and slows scalability from the earliest stages. 

Sectoral concentration represents another significant barrier linked to horizontal gender segregation. In the scientific and technical field, women remain underrepresented in strategic disciplines such as mathematics (36.3%), computer science (17.2%), and engineering (28%), areas that concentrate a significant share of R&D investment and technological development potential.  

This lower presence of women in knowledge- and technology-intensive sectors is also reflected in entrepreneurship. Of all recent initiatives led by women, 87.9% are concentrated in the services sector, followed by the transformation sector (10.3%) and, to a lesser extent, the primary sector (1.8%), reducing their participation in technological activities.

The unequal distribution of caregiving responsibilities remains a structural factor shaping professional trajectories. It is not only a matter of available time, but also of a mental and organizational burden that affects the ability to take risks, accept geographic mobility, or engage in intensive growth dynamics.

In entrepreneurship, this inequality reduces availability to devote long working hours to business development, participate in acceleration programs, or strengthen strategic networks at critical scaling stages. In science, it affects research continuity, the accumulation of merits at key periods, and the availability to lead competitive projects, directly influencing contractual stability and access to higher-responsibility positions.

Thus, the unequal distribution of caregiving responsibilities between women and men not only impacts women’s current professional situation, but also has a cumulative effect throughout their careers.

Finally, both institutional and perceptual biases consolidate the gap at the highest levels. In the scientific system, only 27% of professorships and rector positions are held by women. At the same time, in entrepreneurship, men perceive a lower risk of failure than women, both in early stages (2.2 percentage points lower) and in already established projects (3.3 percentage points lower), influencing their willingness to undertake higher technological risks.

The persistence of these barriers helps explain why female leadership still does not reflect the available talent. However, when these limitations are overcome, the impact becomes visible. There are trajectories that demonstrate that when women access decision-making spaces in science, technology, and innovation, the ecosystem gains in quality, diversity of solutions, and competitiveness.

Female leadership in science and entrepreneurship

Spain is home to female scientists, entrepreneurs, and investors who lead cutting-edge research, develop advanced technology, and generate knowledge transfer with international impact. Their careers stand out not only for individual excellence, but also for their ability to transform strategic sectors and pave the way for new generations.

In the scientific field, figures such as Margarita Salas marked a turning point in molecular biology and in technology transfer from the public research system, demonstrating that science can generate economic return and international positioning.

Elena García Armada, through the development of the first pediatric exoskeleton for children with spinal muscular atrophy, has connected research, engineering, and real clinical application, bringing innovation from the laboratory to direct social impact. 

María Ángela Nieto has made decisive contributions to advancing knowledge in developmental biology and cancer research, positioning Spanish research within high-level international scientific networks. 

This generation of role models also includes Sara García Alonso, biomedical researcher and reserve astronaut at the European Space Agency, whose career combines scientific excellence, international projection, and the ability to inspire STEM vocations in new generations.

In the technological and entrepreneurial sphere, female leadership also drives key sectors.

Nuria Oliver has consolidated artificial intelligence and data science as tools serving health, innovation, and public policy. 

Helena Torras, from the investment field, helps decide which technological projects scale and gain access to funding—an essential space for ecosystem development. And Ana Maiques, at the helm of an internationally present deep tech company, integrates neuroscientific research, technological development, and global markets, demonstrating that science can become a competitive business.

These cases highlight a clear reality: when women lead in science, technology, and investment, the impact multiplies. Innovative solutions are generated, competitiveness is strengthened, and the collective imagination of who can occupy decision-making spaces expands. Female leadership is not an exception—it is a strategic asset that should be made visible, consolidated, and projected.

To discover other profiles of female role models, inspiring trajectories, and real cases of entrepreneurship and innovation, the ONE Platform provides the ecosystem with specific content, interviews and resources that highlight female leadership in strategic sectors. Exploring these stories broadens role models and activates new scientific and entrepreneurial vocations.

How Role Models Drive Vocations and Transform Futures

Women role models have a direct influence on academic and professional decisions. They don’t just inspire—they expand perceptions of opportunity and reshape expectations for both women and men.

When girls, boys, and young people see women leading laboratories, tech startups, or research projects, they broaden their imagination of who can occupy these spaces. Visibility reduces sexist stereotypes and normalizes female presence in strategic sectors such as science, technology, and innovative entrepreneurship.

This exposure has tangible effects. It increases the choice of STEM studies among girls and young women while reinforcing their self-confidence and reducing fear of failure. Hearing real experiences allows them to identify possible paths and understand that barriers can be overcome.

Moreover, the effect is cumulative. Each woman who attains a leadership position expands the pool of available role models. Their presence in the media, educational institutions, universities, and professional forums creates a virtuous circle: more vocations, more talent, and greater competitiveness for the scientific and entrepreneurial system.

Highlighting female leadership is not a symbolic gesture—it is a strategy to transform society.

What the ecosystem can do to activate change

Promoting female leadership does not depend on a single actor: it requires the coordinated involvement of the entire ecosystem—public administrations, universities, research centers, companies, investors, and organizations supporting entrepreneurship. Each of these actors influences access to opportunities, the availability of resources, and the conditions that allow career paths to be consolidated.

Actions that can accelerate this change include:

1. Making female role models visible in education and institutional communication, integrating current and diverse examples at all levels of education.
2. Strengthening professional networks for women and strategic connections, including relationships with investors to promote equitable opportunities for funding and scaling.
3. Balancing access to early-stage funding by promoting inclusive instruments and evaluation mechanisms free from bias.
4. Promoting STEM vocations from an early age, reinforcing exposure to female role models and career guidance without stereotypes.
5. Reviewing evaluation and promotion criteria with objective indicators and more transparent processes.
6. Encouraging technological specialization and facilitating women’s access to R&D-intensive sectors, where much of the added value and strategic opportunities are concentrated.

Reducing the gap is both a matter of equality and democracy, as well as a strategy for competitiveness and efficient use of available talent.

The ONE Platform already acts as a connection point between talent, knowledge, and opportunities within the scientific and entrepreneurial ecosystem. Through the publication of interviews and specialized content, it highlights the trajectories of female scientists, technologists, entrepreneurs, and investors, expanding role models in strategic sectors.

In addition, it offers resources that facilitate decision-making, centralizes information on calls, support instruments, and funding programs, and fosters connections between talent and investors.
In this way, it not only disseminates information but actively contributes to structuring a more accessible, connected, and competitive ecosystem, where female leadership gains greater visibility and better conditions to consolidate and scale.

The future of science and innovation is built through present decisions. Women are already leading; they are already generating impact. The challenge is not to find talent, but to create the conditions for it to scale. The time to act is now.

Bibliografía :

-    Global Entrepreneurship Monitor España. (2025). Informe GEM España 2024–2025. Observatorio del Emprendimiento de España.
-    Global Entrepreneurship Monitor España. (2024). Radiografía del emprendimiento femenino en España: Claves del Informe GEM 2024. Observatorio del Emprendimiento de España.
-    Global Entrepreneurship Monitor España. (2024). Mujeres y emprendimiento en España: Análisis con datos GEM 2023–2024. Observatorio del Emprendimiento de España.
-    Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades. (2025). Científicas en cifras 2025. Gobierno de España.