Women's History Month: 50+ Women in Science and Engineering to Learn More About
March is Women's History Month! Learn more about women in science history and get inspired by these 50+ scientists and engineers!

Women's History Month: 25 Scientists to learn more about!
Update! This post has been updated for 2021 to highlight additional scientists and engineers.
There have always been women in science. Whether recognized at the time or not, women interested in science and engineering have made important discoveries, conducted game-changing research, and pursued careers in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). Uncovering and sharing these stories and encouraging girls to see themselves as future scientists is important, ongoing work for science educators.
There are, of course, far too many women in science history to put on a single list, but the more scientists you and your students know about, the better! This resource can be used during Women’s History Month and year-round to celebrate, recognize, and talk about inspiring women in science. We encourage educators to pair learning more about women in STEM with student reflection on personal interests and possible career paths, too.
We hope seeing lists like this (and the related lists for Black History Month and Hispanic Heritage Month) broadens awareness and helps inspire students to learn more about these scientists and to explore related science projects, activities, and careers.
How to Use this Resource
For each scientist, we have included a short biographical note, a link to a hands-on science project or activity related to the scientist's area of study, a link to a relevant science career profile, and a link to a biography to help students learn more about individual scientists. Educators can use this career worksheet to guide student exploration and reflection about STEM careers.
Women in Science and Engineering
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1. June Almeida, virologist
June Almeida pioneered immune electron microscopy to identify and visualize viruses, including rubella, the structure of hepatitis B, and the first human coronavirus. (Biography)
Experiment with the Small, Tiny, Invisible: How Big Is a Virus? activity.
Career connection: Microbiologist -
2. Mary Anderson, inventor
Mary Anderson designed a swinging arm solution for clearing car windshields of water—the windshield wiper. (Biography)
Experiment with the Design a Cell Phone Stand activity.
Career connection: Commercial & Industrial Designer -
3. Mary Anning, paleontologist
Mary Anning collected fossils and made important Jurassic discoveries at Lyme Regis, including ichthyosaur, plesiosaur, and pterodactyl skeletons. (Biography)
Experiment with the Creating the Best Cast Fossils project.
Career connection: Geoscientist -
4. Virginia Apgar, physician
Virginia Apgar invented the Apgar score, a standardized assessment system for evaluating the health of newborns. (Biography)
Experiment with the Effects of Exercise: Changes in Carbon Dioxide Output project.
Career connection: Physician -
5. Alice Ball, chemist
Alice Ball developed an injectable treatment for leprosy. (Biography)
Experiment with the Why Aren't All Medicines Pills? project.
Career connection: Biochemist -
6. Patricia Bath, ophthalmologist
Patricia Bath was an ophthalmologist who developed laser technology used in treating cataracts. (Biography)
Experiment with the Now You See It, Now You Don't: A Chromatic Adaptation Project project.
Career connection: Optometrist -
7. Linda Buck, neurobiologist
Linda Buck co-won the 2004 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for work on olfactory receptors. (Biography)
Experiment with the Smelly Science: A Sniff Test project.
Career connection: Neurologist -
8. Rachel Carson, ecologist and conservationist
Rachel Carson wrote Silent Spring (1962) about the dangers of pesticides. (Biography)
Experiment with the How Frog Health Predicts Pond Health project.
Career connection: Science Writer, Environmental Scientist -
9. Emmanuelle Charpentier, biochemist
Emmanuelle Charpentier was co-recipient of the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for her pioneering, with Jennifer Doudna, the use of CRISPR-Cas9 genetic scissors to edit DNA. (Biography)
Experiment with the CRISPR Gene Editing of Escherichia coli project.
Career connection: Biochemist -
10. Edith Clarke, electrical engineer
Edith Clarke developed the Clarke Calculator in 1921, a graphing calculator used to help solve electric power transmission problems. (Biography)
Experiment with the Build Your Own Super-sensitive Electric Field Detector project.
Career connection: Electrical & Electronics Engineer -
11. Margaret Collins, entomologist and zoologist
Margaret Collins was an entomologist and zoologist. Known as the "Termite Lady" for her extensive research on termites, she co-discovered the Neotermes luykxi species of termites. (Biography)
Experiment with the Does Temperature Affect the Rate of Butterfly Development? project.
Career connection: Zoologist and Wildlife Biologist -
12. Gerty Cori, biochemist
Gerty Cori was the first woman in America to win a Nobel prize in science when she co-won in 1947 for work on glycogen metabolism (and what became known as the Cori cycle or lactic acid cycle). (Biography)
Experiment with the Blood Sugar Balancing Act: How Exercise Tips the Scales project.
Career connection: Biochemist -
13. Martha Coston, chemist
Martha Coston used the technology of fireworks to develop a pyrotechnic signaling system for use at sea. Coston flares were used by the U.S. Navy during the Civil War. (Biography)
Experiment with the Rainbow Fire project.
Career connection: Chemical Engineer -
14. Marie Curie, physicist and chemist
Marie Curie is known for her work with radioactivity and co-discovery of polonium and radium. Curie was the first woman to win a Nobel prize in science (in 1903 in physics). She won again in 1911 in chemistry. (Biography)
Experiment with the See Background Radiation Zoom Through A Cloud Chamber project.
Career connection: Physicist -
15. Jennifer Doudna, biochemist
Jennifer Doudna was co-recipient of the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for her pioneering, with Emmanuelle Charpentier, the use of CRISPR-Cas9 genetic scissors to edit DNA. (Biography)
Experiment with the CRISPR Gene Editing of Escherichia coli project.
Career connection: Biochemist -
16. Sylvia Earle, marine biologist and oceanographer
Sylvia Earle is a marine biologist and oceanographer dedicated to ocean conservation. Sometimes referred to as the "Sturgeon General," Earle is founder of Mission Blue and has been a National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence since 1999. (Biography)
Experiment with the Something's Fishy About That Fertilizer project.
Career connection: Marine Biologist -
17. Gertrude Elion, biochemist and pharmacologist
Gertrude Elion co-developed drugs for leukemia and Azathioprine, the first immunosuppressant used during organ transplants. She shared the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1988. (Biography)
Experiment with the The Importance of Making Sure a Drug's Aim Is True project.
Career connection: Biochemist -
18. Thelma Estrin, biomedical engineer
Thelma Estrin helped build Israel's first computer, the WEIZAC, in 1954. Her later research included converting analog electroencephalogram signals to digital signals and mapping the human brain using computers. (Biography)
Experiment with the Make a Heart Rate Monitor project.
Career connection: Biomedical Engineer -
19. Irene Fischer, mathematician
Irene Fischer was a mathematician whose work in geodesy included development of the Mercury Datum and research on lunar parallax used during Apollo missions. Her work contributed to what is now the World Geodetic System used by GPS technology. (Biography)
Experiment with the A Puzzling Parallax project.
Career connection: Mathematician -
20. Rosalind Franklin, chemist and crystallographer
Rosalind Franklin was a chemist and crystallographer whose X-ray diffraction of images helped uncover the double-helix structure of DNA. (Biography)
Experiment with the Colorful Double Helix, A Gene-ius Activity activity.
Career connection: Chemist -
21. Dian Fossey, zoologist and primatologist
Dian Fossey is known for her field work with gorillas in Rwanda. (Biography)
Experiment with the Are We There Yet? Test How Migratory Birds Navigate project.
Career connection: Zoologist and Wildlife Biologist -
22. Biruté Galdikas, zoologist and primatologist
Biruté Galdikas is known for her field work with orangutans in Indonesian Borneo. (Biography)
Experiment with the Predators and Prey: How Do Cats Respond to Bird Sound Recordings? project.
Career connection: Zoologist and Wildlife Biologist -
23. Andrea Ghez, astrophysicist
Andrea Ghez received part of the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics for research with Reinhard Genzel that suggests there is a "supermassive" black hole at the center of the Milky Way galaxy. (Biography)
Experiment with the Model of a Black Hole activity.
Career connection: Astronomer -
24. Jane Goodall, zoologist and primatologist
Jane Goodall is known for her field work with chimpanzees in Gombe, Tanzania. To learn more about Dr. Goodall, see STEM is for Everyone: Jane Goodall, Zoologist. See also STEM is for Everyone: Jane Goodall, Zoologist. (Biography)
Experiment with the Build a Bird Feeder and Study the Birds in Your Backyard! project.
Career connection: Zoologist and Wildlife Biologist -
25. Beulah Louise Henry, inventor
Beulah Louise Henry created more than 100 inventions. Nicknamed "Lady Edison," her patent in 1912 for a vacuum ice cream freezer was her first of 49 patents. Among her inventions was the "Miss Illusion" baby doll and the bobbinless sewing machine. (Biography)
Experiment with the Grasping with Straws: Make a Robot Hand Using Drinking Straws project.
Career connection: Mechanical Engineer -
26. Dorothy Hodgkin, chemist
Dorothy Hodgkin developed protein crystallography and used x-ray crystallography to identify or confirm the 3-dimensional molecular structure of penicillin, vitamin B-12, and insulin. She won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1964. (Biography)
Experiment with the Playing a Game While Solving Protein Structures project.
Career connection: Chemist -
27. Helia Bravo Hollis, biologist and botanist
Helia Bravo Hollis was a biologist and botanist whose research focused on the collection and classification of cacti in Mexico. (Biography)
Experiment with the Dissect a Flower activity.
Career connection: Plant Scientist -
28. Mary Jackson, engineer and mathematician
Mary Jackson was NASA's first female African American engineer. Jackson was one of the women at NASA whose story was depicted in the Hidden Figures movie. At NASA, she worked on research related to the Supersonic Pressure Tunnel. (Biography)
Experiment with the Satellite Science: How Does Speed Affect Orbiting Altitude? project.
Career connection: Aerospace Engineer -
29. Mae Jemison, astronaut
Mae Jemison was the first African American woman in space in 1992 on the Endeavour space shuttle. (Biography)
Experiment with the Build a Two-Stage Balloon Rocket activity.
Career connection: Aerospace Engineer -
30. Katherine Johnson, mathematician
Katherine Johnson was featured in Hidden Figures for her work at NASA. Johnson calculated the flight path for Alan Shepard (the first American in space) and later checked critical flight path calculations for Apollo 13. (Biography)
Experiment with the How Does Speed Affect Orbiting Altitude? project.
Career connection: Mathematician -
31. Susana López Charretón, virologist
Susana López Charretón is a virologist whose research on rotavirus identified the ways in which it enters the body (separate from the ways it is commonly transmitted). (Biography)
Experiment with the How Do Viruses React To Soap? activity.
Career connection: Microbiologist -
32. Stephanie Louise Kwolek, chemist
Stephanie Louise Kwolek invented Kevlar while working at DuPont to develop extremely durable synthetic fibers. Kevlar is used in many products, including bulletproof vests. (Biography)
Experiment with the Turn Milk into Plastic! project.
Career connection: Materials Scientist and Engineer -
33. Hedy Lamarr, inventor
Hedy Lamarr was an actress and inventor whose work co-developing a radio guidance system during WWII helped pave the way for modern Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and GPS technologies. (Biography)
Experiment with the The Point of a Parabola: Focusing Signals for a Better Wireless Network project.
Career connection: Radio Frequency Engineer -
34. Henrietta Leavitt, astronomer
Henrietta Leavitt was an astronomer who discovered more than 2,400 variable stars and identified the relationship between luminosity and period for cepheid variable stars. (To learn about another inspiring astronomer, see STEM is for Everyone: Annie Jump Cannon, Classifier of Stars.) (Biography)
Experiment with the How Old Is the Universe? project.
Career connection: Astronomer -
35. Esther Lederberg, microbiologist and bacterial geneticist
Esther Lederberg discovered the lambda phage, a bacterial virus used in the study of gene regulation and genetic recombination. (Biography)
Experiment with the Viruses that Destroy Bacteria project.
Career connection: Microbiologist -
36. Inge Lehmann, seismologist and geophysicist
Inge Lehmann was a seismologist and geophysicist whose analysis of seismic wave data led to her 1936 discovery that the Earth has a solid inner core inside a molten outer core. (Biography)
Experiment with the Measuring the Diameter of the Earth's Core with Seismic Waves project.
Career connection: Geoscientist -
37. Rita Levi-Montalcini, neurobiologist
Rita Levi-Montalcini was co-winner of the 1986 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for co-discovery of the first cellular growth factor identified, Nerve Growth Factor (NGF). (Biography)
Experiment with the Creating a Kidney: How Stem Cells Might Be Used to Bioengineer a Vital Organ project.
Career connection: Biochemist -
38. Ada Lovelace, mathematician
Ada Lovelace is sometimes credited as the first computer programmer because she created the first algorithm used by an early computer prototype.(Biography)
Experiment with the Teach A Computer Kitty How to Draw Shapes project.
Career connection: Computer Programmer -
39. Lise Meitner, physicist
Lise Meitner was a physicist whose research focused on radiation and nuclear physics. She was part of a group of scientists who discovered nuclear fission of uranium, a discovery that later led to the Manhattan Project. (Biography)
Experiment with the How Old Is That Rock? Use Radiometric Dating to Find Out project.
Career connection: Physicist -
40. Julia Morgan, civil engineer and architect
Julia Morgan designed and built more than 700 buildings, including Hearst Castle and the bell tower at Mills College, which withstood the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. (Biography)
Experiment with the Set Your Table for a Sweet and Sticky Earthquake Shake project.
Career connection: Architect -
41. Ellen Ochoa, astronaut and engineer
Ellen Ochoa was the first Hispanic woman in space on the space shuttle Discovery in 1993 and logged almost 1,000 hours in orbit. As a research engineer, she focused on optical systems. She went on to serve as Director of NASA's Johnson Space Center. (Biography)
Experiment with the The James Webb Space Telescope's Amazing Multiple Mirrors and Sunshield project.
Career connection: Aerospace Engineer -
42. Sally Ride, astronaut
Sally Ride was the first American woman in space in 1983 on the Challenger space shuttle (STS-7). (Biography)
Experiment with the Build a Two-Stage Balloon Rocket activity.
Career connection: Aerospace Engineer -
43. Emily Roebling, engineer
Emily Roebling helped oversee the construction and completion of the Brooklyn Bridge for more than ten years after her husband, the chief engineer on the project, became ill. (Biography)
Experiment with the The Effect of Bridge Design on Weight Bearing Capacity project.
Career connection: Civil Engineers -
44. Mary Ross, mathematician
Mary Ross worked on designs for fighter jets planes at Lockheed Corporation during WWII. She was one of the original 40 members (and only woman) of the secret Skunk Works division. Research there included interplanetary space travel. (Biography)
Experiment with the Stealthy Shapes: How to Make an Aircraft Invisible to Radar project.
Career connection: Aerospace Engineer -
45. Vera Rubin, astrophysicist
Vera Rubin was an astrophysicist whose work on galaxy rotation rates provided evidence that dark matter exists in the universe. (Biography)
Experiment with the Finding the Center of the Milky Way Galaxy Using Globular Star Clusters project.
Career connection: Astronomer -
46. Sara Seager, astrophysicist
Sara Seager is an astrophysicist whose research focuses on exoplanets and exoplanet atmospheres. (Biography)
Experiment with the The James Webb Space Telescope's Amazing Multiple Mirrors and Sunshield project.
Career connection: Astronomer -
47. Beatrice (Tilly) Shilling, aeronautical engineer
Beatrice (Tilly) Shilling came up with a solution to a problem Hurricane fighter-bomber and Spitfire fighter planes had in WWII with engines stalling during dives and other negative g-force maneuvers. (Biography)
Experiment with the How Far Will It Fly? Build & Test Paper Planes with Different Drag project.
Career connection: Aerospace Engineer -
48. Nettie Stevens, geneticist
Nettie Stevens discovered sex chromosomes (in the same year as Edmund Beecher Wilson). (Biography)
Experiment with the X-inactivation Marks the Spot for Cat Coat Color project.
Career connection: Cytogenetic Technologist -
49. Marie Tharp, geologist and oceanographic cartographer
Marie Tharp co-created the first scientific map of the floor of the Atlantic Ocean. Her work helped prove theories of plate tectonics and continental drift. (Biography)
Experiment with the What Volcanoes Tell Us About Plate Tectonics project.
Career connection: Cartographer or Photogrammetrist -
50. Dorothy Vaughan, computer scientist and mathematician
Dorothy Vaughan was a computer scientist and mathematician. She was part of the group of "human computers" depicted in the Hidden Figures movie. As NASA adopted the use of computers, Vaughan taught herself FORTRAN and became part of NASA's Analysis and Computation Division (ACD). She also worked on the Scout Launch Vehicle Program. (Biography)
Experiment with the Computer Sleuth: Identification by Text Analysis project.
Career connection: Computer Programmer -
51. Mary Walton, mechanical engineer
Mary Walton used a model train system to prototype and develop solutions for reducing noise pollution related to trains and air pollution related to trains and buildings with chimneys. (Biography)
Experiment with the Materials for Sound Barriers project.
Career connection: Mechanical Engineer
Further Reading
Preschool/Elementary School
- A Computer Called Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Helped Put America on the Moon
- Ada: My First Ada Lovelace (Little People, Big Dreams series)
- Always Looking Up: Nancy Grace Roman, Astronomer
- Born Curious: 20 Girls Who Grew Up to Be Awesome Scientists
- Caroline's Comets: A True Story
- Computer Decoder: Dorothy Vaughan, Computer Scientist
- Counting on Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Saved Apollo 13
- Dinosaur Lady: The Daring Discoveries of Mary Anning, the First Paleontologist
- Evelyn the Adventurous Entomologist
- Everyday Superheroes: Women in STEM Careers
- Fossil Huntress: Mary Leakey, Paleontologist
- Grace Hopper: Queen of Computer Code
- Hedy Lamarr's Double Life: Hollywood Legend and Brilliant Inventor
- Human Computer: Mary Jackson, Engineer
- Joan Procter, Dragon Doctor: The Woman Who Loved Reptiles
- June Almeida, Virus Detective!: The Woman Who Discovered the First Human Coronavirus
- Life in the Ocean: The Story of Oceanographer Sylvia Earle
- Look Up!: Henrietta Leavitt, Pioneering Woman Astronomer
- Mae Among the Stars
- Margaret and the Moon Hardcover
- Maria Mitchell: The Soul of an Astronomer
- Maria Sibylla Merian: Artist, Scientist, Adventurer
- Mary Anning's Curiosity
- Me . . . Jane
- Numbers in Motion: Sophie Kowalevski, Queen of Mathematics
- Ocean Speaks: How Marie Tharp Revealed the Ocean's Biggest Secret
- Patricia's Vision: The Doctor Who Saved Sight
- Queen of Physics: How Wu Chien Shiung Helped Unlock the Secrets of the Atom
- Rachel Carson and Her Book That Changed the World
- Secrets of the Sea: The Story of Jeanne Power, Revolutionary Marine Scientist
- Shark Lady: The True Story of How Eugenie Clark Became the Ocean's Most Fearless Scientist
- She Caught the Light: Williamina Stevens Fleming: Astronomer
- Solving the Puzzle Under the Sea: Marie Tharp Maps the Ocean Floor
- Spring After Spring: How Rachel Carson Inspired the Environmental Movement
- Swimming with Sharks: The Daring Discoveries of Eugenie Clark
- The Astronaut With a Song for the Stars: The Story of Dr. Ellen Ochoa
- The Doctor with an Eye for Eyes: The Story of Dr. Patricia Bath
- The Girl With a Mind for Math: The Story of Raye Montague
- The Girl Who Could Rock the Moon - An Inspirational Tale about Mary G. Ross and the Magic of STEM
- The Girl Who Named Pluto: The Story of Venetia Burney
- The Girl Who Thought in Pictures: The Story of Dr. Temple Grandin
- The Leaf Detective: How Margaret Lowman Uncovered Secrets in the Rainforest
- The Story of Marie Curie: A Biography Book for New Readers
- The Stuff Between the Stars: How Vera Rubin Discovered Most of the Universe
- The Watcher: Jane Goodall's Life with the Chimps
- The World Is Not a Rectangle: A Portrait of Architect Zaha Hadid
- Top of The Class: The Story of Marjorie Lee Browne
- What Miss Mitchell Saw
- Who Was Sally Ride?
- Wood, Wire, Wings: Emma Lilian Todd Invents an Airplane
Grades 5+ / Middle School
- Find Where the Wind Goes: Moments from My Life
- Finding Wonders: Three Girls Who Changed Science
- Girls Think of Everything: Stories of Ingenious Inventions by Women
- Girls Who Build: Inspiring Curiosity and Confidence to Make Anything Possible
- Girls Who Looked Under Rocks
- Grasping Mysteries: Girls Who Loved Math
- Path to the Stars: My Journey from Girl Scout to Rocket Scientist
- Primates: The Fearless Science of Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Biruté Galdikas
- Radioactive!: How Irène Curie and Lise Meitner Revolutionized Science and Changed the World
- Reaching for the Moon: The Autobiography of NASA Mathematician Katherine Johnson
- The Girl Who Drew Butterflies: How Maria Merian's Art Changed Science
- Women in Science: 50 Fearless Pioneers Who Changed the World
- Women in Space: 23 Stories of First Flights, Scientific Missions, and Gravity-Breaking Adventures
High School/Adult
- Atomic Women: The Untold Stories of the Scientists Who Helped Create the Nuclear Bomb
- Code Girls: The Untold Story of the American Women Code Breakers of World War II
- Galaxy Girls: 50 Amazing Stories of Women in Space
- Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race
- Rise of the Rocket Girls: The Women Who Propelled Us, from Missiles to the Moon to Mars
- Silent Spring
For additional STEM reading suggestions, see our STEM reading list.
Images: public domain or fair use, with exception of:
June Almeida (credit: Joyce Almeida)
Linda Buck (CC BY-SA 3.0; The Royal Society)
Emmanuelle Charpentier (CC BY-SA 4, Emmanuelle Charpentier)
Jennifer Doudna (CC BY-SA 3, The Royal Society)
Gertrude Elion (CC BY-SA 4.0; GSK Heritage Archives)
Thelma Estrin (CC BY-SA 3.0; User:Achituv)
Irene Fischer (CC BY-SA; Digital Commonwealth Massachusetts Collections Online)
Biruté Galdikas (CC BY-A 2.0)
Andrea Ghez (credit John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation)
Jane Goodall (GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2; Muhammad Mahdi Karim)
Stephanie Louise Kwolek (CC BY-SA 3.0; Science History Institute)
Esther Lederberg (The Esther M. Zimmer Lederberg Trust)
Inge Lehmann (CC BY-SA 4; The Royal Library, National Library of Denmark and University of Copenhagen University Library)
Sara Seager (CC BY-SA 3.0; Science History Institute)
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