Female entrepreneurship in tech

Despite the current focus on female inclusion and diversion in all industries, the participation rate of women in the tech industry is still low, especially within entrepreneurial activities. With female entrepreneurship research increasing over the past decades it is more focused on an individual level. The few researches available on female entrepreneurs in the tech industry is based mostly on male-to-female comparisons focused on differences in educational experiences, entrepreneurial intentions, networks and financing. SET education is considered to be only relevant to entrepreneurial intentions and implies an expectation of the tech industry as an entrepreneur’s choice. The purpose of this research is therefore to explore the relation between science, engineering and technology education in the decision-making process of female entrepreneur’s choice of the tech industry”. Using a qualitative method interviewing women entrepreneurial experience in Norway and Egypt with a technical background in comparison to women entrepreneurs with a nontechnical education. The interviews focused on three main topics: entrepreneurial and educational experience and character. The findings show that two factors influence the choice of the tech industry: gender and education. By applying the effectuation and causation framework, a science, engineering and technology education plays a role in the choice of roles to take in the start-up, entrepreneurial intentions and expectations. Also interlinked with education in the choice of the tech industry are interests and lack of female mentors in the tech industry. To conclude the research found that a female entrepreneurs decision-making process relation to the tech industry is intertwined between education and gender. The somewhat direct and somewhat indirect relation of science, engineering and technology education to entrepreneurial intentions, role in a start-up and ambition’s influence is not country or culture specific but rather industry specific. This paves the way for further research from a practical perspective for the educational institution to further look into the curriculum to improve the relation to the role women choose to play, their expectations and better understanding of the choice of industry