Oh, thank god. My hope is born anew! I am trying to do something in STEM.
Just remember though that your work can't just be good, you have to be assertive too, you have to make it known to your boss that you are serious and you want the promotion when it comes time to select someone
Else even low IQ Chad will get the promotion while you timidly type away at your laptop in some corner
Being in the working world is also a social thing, it isn't about just doing your work and doing it well, being assertive about what you want is a must to move up to a higher position, being the quiet hard worker just means you are a useful idiot that they can keep around to keep the company profiting without having to reward you
Don't even delude yourself into thinking that you being an asset means that they value you, people will always try to get as much output out of you with minimal input, and you not being assertive is you signalling to your superiors that they can milk all your time and effort and not have to bother rewarding you
The only reason I got promotions and raises is not just because I was a good worker, but it was because I demanded pay raises and promotions along with working hard, you have to let people know that you are an asset and you expect to be treated like one, rather than something disposable
I know for a fact there are a lot of guys how complain about "Chad getting promotions" in the work place when all they did was do work and never tried to socialize with the boss or let the boss know that they are expecting a promotion at some point because of their quality of work
To many people (sadly even men today) expect to be passive in life and to not be overlooked
Chad is inherently social, he's going to be trying to hang out with the boss, if its a female boss he's going to be flirting, etc, but if you are being assertive on top of out performing him, she will still pick you, because profits and efficiency come first