Why Are Fewer Women Entering Accounting and Finance in the UK?

For years, accounting and finance have been held up as a reliable and balanced career path for anyone to take. But quietly, something has shifted, and across the UK, fewer women are entering the profession, and many are leaving mid-career for an alternative.

This paints a stark picture. The ICAEW data shows that registrations from female students have hovered around 42% for the last five years, and female apprentices joining the industry have dropped too. The Financial Reporting Council’s latest report also shows that women make up only 37% of directors and only 25% of partners in finance.

This reveals an uncomfortable truth and leads us to the question: is the finance industry itself stacked against women? Let’s look at the facts.

Start from the beginning

Watching a recent webinar from Gravitate Accounting, where a panel of female finance leaders were invited to speak, helped us shed some light on what’s going on. The consensus was that we need to start with those first touchpoints and consider the language and approaches we use when trying to attract women into finance as a career.

Too often, job descriptions, adverts and even job titles can carry subtle bias, and assessments and outdated interview processes are quietly filtering out capable candidates before they’ve even had a chance to demonstrate that they can really do.

We can’t hire who doesn’t apply

Recruitment data from Yorkshire and the Humber shows that firms are now seeing an 80:20 male to female split at apprentice level. This imbalance can begin long before someone even hits “apply” on a job advert – it starts with how the industry is perceived.

There is still the belief that accounting is male-dominated; that it means working long hours, is quite cut-throat and all about spreadsheets, and that simply isn’t true anymore. But if that’s what potential candidates have in their heads, it doesn’t matter what we know, the perception of the industry will always win out.

Outreach and visibility matter more than anything at attraction stage. Karen Arch from BHP Accounting spoke about ensuring we’re promoting alternative routes into the finance industry, and also ensuring that we’re demonstrating what the modern accountant looks like – not just the suits at the top table, but the diverse and creative professionals shaping today’s finance function.

Retention still matters

One of the points highlighted during the webinar was that whilst application rates can be quite balanced between men and women, once women are in the system, more of them drop out, often at the psychometric test stage, or during the face-to-face interviews.

It’s not about capability, though – a lot of it could be to do with confidence. The interview process for a lot of accounting jobs can focus hard on numerical reasoning, which is obviously important, but these tests don’t showcase interpersonal strengths, or behaviours that can demonstrate leadership potential. Panel interviews conducted by senior staff can also unintentionally reinforce sameness. If we want to see different results, we need to change how we’re measuring people’s potential during that interview stage.

Leadership visibility changes everything

Representation can’t just be a buzzword. It truly does help drive diversity. Seeing women at the top in industries like accounting gives other women permission to imagine themselves in that role too – and that’s powerful!

Showcasing women in leadership positions is crucial, and we don’t mean just recording the stats – we need to tell people about it. Be a little braver, celebrate your female partners and show the stories behind them, not just the statistics.

Get on Gen-Z’s level

If you want to attract younger generations, you need to learn to show up where they are, and ensure you’re offering something they actually value. Young people don’t just want a job, they want flexibility and authenticity, and are struggling to find that from firms that still, to all intents and purposes, look and feel like they did ten years ago.

Social media is now your shop front – if your brand is visible on platforms like Linkedin, Instagram and TikTok, displaying your culture and your people, you’re already ahead of the curve. Nobody is saying you need to make things that feel totally out of your wheelhouse, but some presence on social media is necessary in 2025. It helps people see what it’s truly like to work for your business, not just what you write in your adverts.

The way forward, in short

The industry has acknowledged there’s a problem, and the challenge now is turning awareness into action. This means:

• Reviewing job ads and the language we use
• Showcasing women at every level in your organisation
• Using real stories and social content to change people’s perceptions of the finance industry
• Reviewing your interview and assessment processes to ensure they measure potential as well as assess performance
• Investing in mentorship and visible leadership

Accounting and finance need women – their perspectives are invaluable and build a more equitable industry for all of us. The decline we’re seeing isn’t inevitable, but reversing it will take deliberate, sustained effort from every firm in the profession.

Recognising the issue is only the start. Acting on it is what will truly change it for our future generations.