Young women are more ambitious than ever.

In fact, a recent study from Monash University found that more young women than young men see themselves going to university and pursuing a “prestigious” career pathway.

But there’s a significant barrier holding them back, with the study also noting the rising levels of anxiety experienced by young women making career plans – something not experienced to the same extent by their male counterparts.

In fact, according to the study, approximately one third of young women experience a high degree of “career stress”, with many noting a specific fear of never gaining a “real” career as well as being held back by persistent bias.

As companies struggle through a global talent shortage, attracting and retaining ambitious young women has never been more important. Progressive workplaces must work to ensure that aspiring female leaders are supported at all levels to excel or face the consequences.

We recently spoke with four women in their 20s, working across different industries to gauge their advice on the support and policies needed to shift the dial.

Bronte Charles, Cross Platform Journalist at National Indigenous Television (NITV)
21-year-old Bundjalung woman Bronte Charles had no idea what career or study path she wanted to pursue when she graduated high school. She describes the uncertainty she felt during this time as “stressful” and it wasn’t until she did her first unit in journalism at Macquarie University that she felt a pull in a specific direction.

“When I did my first journalism unit at Macquarie, I knew that’s what I wanted to do – I wanted to give Indigenous people a voice and had finally found a platform to do that,” she explains. “I had a shift in mindset of what the role of a job was. This shift led me on a different career path.”

As a cross-platform journalist at NITV, Charles is passionate about telling the stories of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. She is focused on doing work that is fulfilling and wants to continue to work at organisations that value diversity and workplace culture.

“Seeing other people who look like me, think like me and have gone through similar experiences to me makes me feel more comfortable at work,” Charles says “I don’t want to be leaving my cultural identity at the door as soon as I go into the office.”

As an Indigenous woman, Bronte says flexibility at work is paramount for her future career, and this is something that might look different to non-Indigenous people.

“Flexibility is super important, things like being able to take time off for sorry business and switching around public holidays like January 26,” she says.

Katherine Ho, Paralegal and final year law student
25-year-old Sydney-based Katherine Ho always knew her strengths were writing and critical thinking, but she never expected to end up in a law degree. But she’s now in her final year of university, working as a paralegal and looking forward to working hard as a first year lawyer.

As she looks to the future, Ho says she’d like to incorporate travel into her career over the next two years, and ensure she keeps a healthy work/life balance.

“While I am definitely ambitious and passionate about my career, I value my mental health just as much,” she shares. “The moment I feel overwhelmed and burnt out, I always take it upon myself to tap out and take care of myself first. Doing that will make you happier to do your job later on.”

Having a healthy work environment is key for Ho and it’s something she sees other young  women in her workplace valuing too.

“My generation of women have the same fire as the generation before us, we have the same ambition and passion about proving our worth and value. However, I also think we accept that we need to put ourselves first, because a healthy mind and a healthy environment will also help our careers prosper.”

Zara Seidler, Co-founder of The Daily Aus
Like Bronte and Katherine, 25-year-old Zara Seidler had no early direction when it came to her career. Asked if she had any idea what she wanted to do while she was studying, Seidler says: “No! Zero, zilch, none.”

“I knew I was interested in politics, but had no clue how that translated into a career,” she says.

Left to her own devices, Seidler tried her hand at anything and everything related to politics - working in a political office, lobbying, government relations and political journalism.

Seidler is now the co-founder of youth focused media company The Daily Aus, leading a team to deliver social first news to thousands of young Aussies every single day.

“I wanted to build something I couldn’t see. It’s fair to say when TDA was created, the plan was never for it to become my “job”, it was always my hobby and my passion,” she says. 

Seidler now has a talented team working with her, and has ambitions for the company to become the largest youth news publisher in the country.

Sara Bugno, Soil Engagement Officer at an environmental NFP
28-year-old Sara Bugno has taken many different paths to end up where she is, working in the environmental sector as a soil engagement officer in the Northern Territory. When she first tried university at age 19, she didn’t end up finishing her degree because she was struggling to figure out what she wanted from it. The uncertainty was stressful, so she decided to get some “real world” experience under her belt before continuing any further study.

“It was only after working lots of different jobs and volunteering in my areas of interest did I know what field I wanted to go into,” she explains.

After going back to study Horticulture and Conservation, Bugno is now happily working at an environmental not-for-profit and is finally feeling like she knows what she wants from her career.

Looking to the future, Bugno says she will always seek out passion and job satisfaction in her career, and would encourage other young women to gain some first-hand experience in the workforce if they are unsure about what career path to follow.