University of Technology Sydney will allow women applying for degrees in engineering, IT or construction to leapfrog men with higher ATARs, as part of an effort to boost the number of women in STEM subjects.

UTS says it understands it is the first university in Australia to offer bonus points to women applying to enter its undergraduate courses.

In a statement on Thursday, it said men make up more than 80 per cent of engineering and computing graduates from Australia universities, even though women make up 58 per cent of all domestic undergraduate students.

The university has the backing of both the NSW Anti-Discrimination Board and the national representative body Engineers Australia.

UTS will offer 10 adjustment points to the ATAR of women students applying for all undergraduate degrees in the Faculty of Engineering and IT as well as the construction degree in the Faculty of Design, Architecture and Building.

STEM subjects at UTS had an ATAR cut-off of about 80 in 2019.

A UTS spokeswoman told Hack women will need to make the minimum ATAR for these STEM courses to be eligible for adjustment points; the points will then be applied to boost their chances of making the final selection.

UTS already applies adjustment points for elite athletes and performers, students with low socio-economic backgrounds, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, or anyone who proves they've been significantly disadvantaged during the HSC.

Director of UTS Women in Engineering and IT Dr Arti Agarwal said previous measures to encourage women in STEM had not been successful enough.

A generation of initiatives to support greater participation by women in these key industries of the future has seen minor progress," she said.

Existing programs to boost the number of women in STEM subjects included mentoring programs and buddy systems, the UTS spokeswoman said.

Engineers Australia National Manager for Professional Diversity and STEM Justine Romanis said it was time to "flick the switch".

"We need to be disruptive - what we have been doing to date is just not working."