Women of Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Caribbean descent are doing well in schools but are still being penalised in the workplace, a report suggests.
Some women are achieving highly at school but not in their careers
The Equal Opportunities Commission found 80-89% of 16-year-olds from those ethnic groups wanted to work full-time.
But it said they were up to four times more likely to be jobless.
Business organisation the CBI said better careers advice and work experience was needed but it did not accept such discrimination existed.
It said "too many restrict themselves by only going for jobs or careers where they can see women from a similar background already present".
According to the EOC, in 2005, 60% of white girls attained at least five GCSEs grade A to C, compared with 59% of girls of Bangladeshi descent; 54% of girls of Pakistani descent and 49% of girls of Caribbean descent.
This is compared with 50% of white boys; 33% of boys of Caribbean descent, 43% of boys of Pakistani descent and 47% of boys of Bangladeshi descent.
The three groups were chosen by the EOC as those who faced the most discrimination, despite having the same aspirations as white girls to combine work and family life.
It found women from each group faced specific problems.
For example, of 1,000 women under 35 questioned, one in five of Pakistani or Bangladeshi origin - of whom 90% were Muslim - said they had experienced negative attitudes to religious dress at work.
And one in six women of Pakistani descent and one in eight of Bangladeshi or Caribbean descent aged under 35 said they were "often" asked at job interviews about their plans for marriage and children or that they had been asked by employers what their husband and/or partner thought about them working.
The research, into 16-year-olds, found half of girls of Caribbean descent and two-thirds of those of Pakistani and Bangladeshi origin felt there were certain jobs they could not apply for because of their ethnic background or gender.
They were also significantly more likely to look at whether an employer made it clear it welcomed applications from all ethnic minorities and whether women from ethnic minorities were in senior management.
Women of Caribbean descent were also finding it difficult to break out of health and social care jobs.
Jenny Watson, chair of the Equal Opportunities Commission, said the next generation of confident, ambitious young black and Asian women had a lot to contribute to their families, to local communities and to the economy.
"The bad news is that not enough employers are tapping into this pool of talent - despite demographic predictions that suggest women of Bangladeshi, Caribbean and Pakistani origin will make up, in some areas, a significant proportion of the workforce of the future," she said.
"And many of these young women are telling us they have to deal with racism, sexism and negative stereotypes."
"It's not only employers who miss out - we all do when young women's ambitions are dashed and we fail to build cohesive communities.
"More must be done before another generation of promising young women fall prey to the same negative cycle of poor pay, poor prospects, and occupational segregation."
Susan Anderson, CBI Director of HR Policy, said the report showed the girls were "confident and ambitious" and "just the sort of employee that businesses are looking for".
She added: "Employers report that they receive too few applications from women and ethnic minority groups, and they recognise that they need to take positive steps to attract these young girls."