‘You must aim high’ - ‘No, I never felt like a woman’: women and men making sense of non-standard trajectories into higher education
Autor/in:
González Ramos, Ana M.; Räthzel, Nora
Quelle: International Journal of Gender, Science and Technology, 10 (2018) 1, 17 S
Inhalt: It is no secret that the ‘glass ceiling’ preventing women advancing to leadership positions exists in academia as well. Spain is no exception. Gender relations are usually investigated independently of other power relations like class and ethnicity. In our sample (80 men and women in different academic institutions across Spain) we found that not only women but also men from working class backgrounds have difficulties making successful academic careers. Therefore, we use an intersectional approach to investigate the relationship between gender and class. Comparing two life-histories, we explore what strategies individuals employ to overcome the barriers with which they are confronted. We present the stories of a woman with a middle class but non-academic background and of a man with a working-class background. Their strategies can be understood as the result of specific individual trajectories under specific societal conditions, but they also illustrate the barriers and possibilities men and women with non-standard backgrounds encounter in academia. Analysing successful strategies as well as their limitations, we aim to provide perspectives that might contribute to changing the culture of hegemonic masculinities in academia.
CEWS Kategorie:Berufsbiographie und Karriere, Diversity, Europa und Internationales, Frauen- und Geschlechterforschung, Geschlechterverhältnis, Wissenschaft als Beruf
Challenging Explanations for the lack of Senior Women in Science? Reflections from Successful Women Scientists at an elite British University
Autor/in:
Chapple, Alison; Ziebland, Sue
Quelle: International Journal of Gender, Science and Technology, 9 (2018) 3, S 298–315
Inhalt: Despite many initiatives to improve diversity, women working in science in the UK are still under-represented at senior levels. There are few studies drawing on the accounts of successful women scientists about gender discrimination and workplace stereotyping. We interviewed 39 women scientists working at an elite British university. A qualitative thematic analysis drew on three controversial ‘explanations’ for gender inequality in science, which are variously challenged by our data. The women we talked to were all ambitious and successful and (unsurprisingly, given this success) did not suggest that they have personally experienced serious discrimination in their careers. Some conceded that perhaps other women may not reach senior positions in science because of social expectations, low confidence or a lack of support. A few had experienced, or heard of, negative consequences of stereotyping, implicit bias or a ‘boys’ network’, whereby men met outside work for activities such as pub visits or football, which were the main reasons given to explain why some women do not progress to senior positions. Encouragingly some described how gender stereotypes are being resisted; these women scientists are themselves role models for junior colleagues.
Scientists' early grant success fuels further funding
Autor/in:
Else, Holly
Quelle: Nature, 556 (2018) 7702, S 416–417
Inhalt: Über ein interessantes Studienergebnis berichtet Nature: Untersucht wurde, wie sich die Zu- bzw. Absage eines Drittmittelprojekts in der frühen Postdoc-Phase auf weitere Bewerbungen auswirkt. Das Ergebnis: Wer Glück hatte, ein erstes großes Projekt bewilligt zu bekommen, strich in den darauffolgenden acht Jahren mehr als doppelt so viele Forschungsgelder ein. Auch die Wahrscheinlichkeit, eine Professur zu erhalten, ist deutlich höher – interessanterweise steigt aber nicht die Anzahl oder der Impact der Publikationen selbst. Das heißt: Wissenschaftler, die über die Vergabe von Geldern für bestimmte Projekte entscheiden, haben eine Art Grant-Bias, der ihre positive Wahrnehmung von erfolgreichen Geldeinwerbern verstärkt. „Glück“ ist bei all dem übrigens ein wichtiges Stichwort. Nature zitiert den Soziologen Thijs Bol von der Universität Amsterdam: „‚There is a group of very young talented scholars who have bad luck,‘ says Bol. ‚They do not get the same resources to bring their ideas to life.‘“ (Zeit Chancen Brief)
Autor/in:
Bol, Thijs; Vaan, Mathijs de; van de Rijt, Arnout
Quelle: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, (2018)
Inhalt: A classic thesis is that scientific achievement exhibits a "Matthew effect": Scientists who have previously been successful are more likely to succeed again, producing increasing distinction. We investigate to what extent the Matthew effect drives the allocation of research funds. To this end, we assembled a dataset containing all review scores and funding decisions of grant proposals submitted by recent PhDs in a €2 billion granting program. Analyses of review scores reveal that early funding success introduces a growing rift, with winners just above the funding threshold accumulating more than twice as much research funding (€180,000) during the following eight years as nonwinners just below it. We find no evidence that winners' improved funding chances in subsequent competitions are due to achievements enabled by the preceding grant, which suggests that early funding itself is an asset for acquiring later funding. Surprisingly, however, the emergent funding gap is partly created by applicants, who, after failing to win one grant, apply for another grant less often.
Dual Career im Dilemma? : Wege zu einer aktiven Förderung
Autor/in:
Melzer, Kerstin
Quelle: Forschung & Lehre, 7 (2018)
Inhalt: Immer wieder ist zu hören, dass Universitäten den Partnerinnen und Partnern von Forschenden Stellen anbieten, um die Berufung erfolgreich abschließen zu können. Wie sieht die Realität für akademische Dual Career Paare aus?
Schlagwörter:Berufung; Beschäftigungsbedingungen; Dual Career Paare; Förderungsmaßnahmen
CEWS Kategorie:Berufsbiographie und Karriere, Wissenschaft als Beruf, Hochschulen
Zurückscheuen - Warum Frauen den Wettbewerb meiden
Autor/in:
Niessen-Rünzi, Alexandra; Rünzi, Stefan
Quelle: Forschung & Lehre, (2018) 3, S 244–245
Inhalt: Frauen meiden Konkurrenzsituationen, das ist ein häufig genannter Grund für den geringen Anteil von Frauen in Führungspositionen. Laut einer aktuellen Studie sind Frauen durchaus bereit, sich dem Wettbewerb mit anderen zu stellen, wenn sie zuvor weibliche Vorbilder erleben.
Schlagwörter:Frauen in Führungspositionen; Konkurrenzverhalten; Rollenmodelle
CEWS Kategorie:Arbeitswelt und Arbeitsmarkt, Berufsbiographie und Karriere
The acadmic mobility regime: Analysing perceptions of students and academic staff
Autor/in:
Petzold, Knut; Bucher, Hannah
Quelle: International Review of Social Research, 8 (2018) 1, S 98–108
Inhalt: Referring to the concept of the ‘mobility regime’
this study aims to gain a deeper understanding of the
interrelations between internationalisation of higher
education and individual perceptions of members of the
academic system. Academics and students in Germany,
both with and without international experience, were
interviewed in order to find indications how the mobility
regime dimensions of normalisation, rationalisation
and time-space compression are structured particularly
in the academic system. Using an exploratory research
design and qualitative content analysis to interpret data
of in-depth interviews helps to understand the specific
shape of the regime dimensions. We reconstruct how
dimensions of a mobility regime are perceived across
all sampling groups. Slight group differences in the
perceptions of single dimensions provide additional
insights. We propose the specific concept of an ‘academic
mobility regime’ in order to capture the specifics of the
mobility regime in the academic system
Guest Editorial: Gender and Masculinities in Careers and Leadership in Higher Education
Autor/in:
Sagebiel, Felizitas; White, Kate
Quelle: International Journal of Gender, Science and Technology, 10 (2018) 1, 6 S
Inhalt: This Special Issue, recognising vertical gender segregation in higher education, combines papers focusing on challenges for women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines in career progression and taking on leadership roles.
Schlagwörter:Führungsposition; Geschlecht; Geschlechtersegregation; Karriereentwicklung; Männlichkeit; MINT
CEWS Kategorie:Berufsbiographie und Karriere, Wissenschaft als Beruf, Naturwissenschaft und Technik, Frauen- und Geschlechterforschung, Geschlechterverhältnis
Selecting early-career researchers : The influence of discourses of internationalisation and excellence on formal and applied selection criteria in academia
Autor/in:
Herschberg, Channah; Benschop, Yvonne; van den Brink, Marieke
Quelle: High Educ (Higher Education), 4 (2018) 2, 61 S
Inhalt: This article examines how macro-discourses of internationalisation and excellence shape formal and applied selection criteria for early-career researcher positions at the meso-organisational and micro-individual levels, demonstrating how tensions between the various levels produce inequalities in staff evaluation. In this way, this article contributes to the literature on academic staff evaluation by showing that Selection Committee members do not operate in a vacuum, and that their actions are inextricably linked to the meso- and macro-context. This study draws on qualitative multi-level data that comprise institutional-level policies, recruitment and staff protocols, job postings and individual-level interviews and focus groups with Selection Committee members. Findings show that a majority of Selection Committee members consent to university policies and macro-discourses when evaluating early-career researchers, but a smaller group questions and resists these criteria. Furthermore, the analysis revealed four inequalities that emerge in the application of criteria and reflect on disciplinary differences between the Natural and Social Sciences. The article concludes that with only a few Committee members to critically question and resist formal selection criteria, they limit the pool of acceptable candidates to those who fit the narrow definition of the internationally mobile and excellent early-career researcher, which may exclude talented scholars.
Are New Career Models for Science Research Emerging?
Autor/in:
White, Kate
Quelle: International Journal of Gender, Science and Technology, 10 (2018) 1, S 73–87
Inhalt: This paper explores how the traditional gendered model of science excellence impacts on the careers of women scientists. Using an Australian case study, it then examines the following aspects of science careers: what gives scientists job satisfaction; differing perceptions of how to build science careers; how networks, mobility and mentoring are fundamental to research careers; how gender is often a factor in science research careers; and huge generational change underway that is leading to new career models. The paper argues that these new models have the capacity to change the traditional gendered model of science careers.
Schlagwörter:Akademische Karriere; Arbeitszufriedenheit; career paths in science; Exzellenz; Frauen in der Wissenschaft; Gender; Geschlecht; Gleichstellung; Higher Education; Hochschule; Mentoring; Mobilität; Netzwerk; new career models; Österreich; wissenschaftliche Karriere; Wissenschaftskarriere
CEWS Kategorie:Berufsbiographie und Karriere, Wissenschaft als Beruf, Hochschulen, Frauen- und Geschlechterforschung, Geschlechterverhältnis