Abstract of "Career Patterns"- Chapter 4
Generally women scientists and engineers are more likely to be unemployed or underemployed than their male counterparts. Women are promoted more slowly; in academe they are more likely to be in the lower faculty ranks and less likely to be tenured. Fewer women than men are employed in industry and those few are unlikely to be in management positions. Women's salaries are generally lower. Some measures that have been found to help the advancement of women scientists and engineers are:
- Availability of female role models and mentors among the senior S&E work force.
- Access to support networks.
Postdoctoral Appointments
Postdoctoral appointments are special because they bridge the gap between the Ph.D. and employment. The percentage of U.S. citizens planning to accept postdoctoral positions prior to employment increased significantly between 1970 an 1985 but remained relatively stable up to 1990. There are two types of postdoctoral appointments:
- A true fellowship - with no duties attached.
- A research appointment - extension of standard research assistantship position.
Postdoctoral appointments are often prestigious and are sometimes viewed as a sort of glorious interlude between graduate study and permanent employment. However it is increasingly difficult to find qualified young people to work as postdoctoral fellows since fewer Ph.D.s are going into science. A common problem faced by postdocs is the low compensation. The average age at doctorate completion now ranges from 29 to 32. Therefore a new science or engineering Ph.D. of either sex is likely to face family responsibilities and salary considerations.
The National Research Council's 1981 report on Postdoctoral Appointments and Disappointments found that married men were less likely than single men to accept postdoctoral appointments but that the reverse was true for women. This suggests that many men who must support families do not feel that they can sacrifice the additional income of a permanent position.
On the other hand women whose mobility is constrained by marriage and child-rearing factors may welcome postdoctoral opportunities as opposed to permanent positions. Despite potential drawbacks, postdoctoral appointments are a useful option for the increasing frequency of dual-career couples. This may explain why women were 50% more likely to accept a postdoctoral appointment than men.
The 1981 NRC study found that many postdocs were in a "waiting stage" because there were not enough jobs available. Some individuals seek postdoctoral appointments when employment demand is low, which may explain the results obtained. However if the number of openings in industry and academe increases postdocs should have no problem finding placement in permanent positions.
Employment in a Scientific or Engineering Field
With the changing face of the work force, a need arises to monitor the goals and effectiveness of intervention programs.
Once a woman has entered an S&E career it's important to ensure that her opportunities for promotions and raises are equal to those of a man.
The positions held by female scientists and engineers seldom involve power and prestige or permit them to engage in policy making or consulting. These activities would provide them with high visibility and other incentives. In addition, women are more often reported to be unemployed or working part-time because of family responsibilities. These reports may interfere with perceptions of women's potential and/or commitment and eventual advancement.
Academe
According to one study, the lack of change within the institutional structures has allowed
sex inequities in the hiring, promotion, and tenuring of faculty to continue substantially unchanged. Institutional self-assessment studies have found that "women still face barriers to advancement that their male colleagues do not." In many cases, people are just doing what they have always done without realizing that their ways of operating shuts certain people out. Such discouragement can involve using "macho" stereotypes to describe research style as well as assigning traditionally female responsibilities to female members of the department. Verbal and gender-specific harassment are still present even if sexual harassment is not. It was found that the fewer women a department has to begin with the harder it is to attract and retain others. The reason involves women graduate students and junior faculty feeling lonely and isolated and lacking support from their colleagues.
Industry
Women in industry face similar problems as those in academe. However, women's rate
of employment has improved substantially since equal opportunity was implemented and monitored. Inequalities in industry are more subtle. Examples of inequalities are:
- Relying on informal referrals ("old boy network") rather than advertising directly to fill vacancies.
- Using that same network rather than standard performance evaluations when considering individual employees for promotions.
- Precluding spouses from working in the same department of the company.
- Linking promotions to one's length of employment.
- Condoning coworkers' remarks and actions "calculated to put [women] in their place by emphasizing their deviant gender status... [in] occupations that have been [traditionally] defined as male."
- Excluding women from "informal networks in which information is shared and alliances develop".
Such inequities contribute to a "company climate" which is often not as supportive of women as it could be. Other studies thoroughly document the smaller likelihood of women to attain management positions than men.
Government
The federal work force today must operate in an environment that is significantly different from 20 years ago. According to a 1988 study done by the White House Task Force, employment of women and minorities had almost doubled during the previous decade, but only 10% of the employed S&E Ph.D.s were women. Of that group only 57% earned $50,000 or more a year (compared to 75% of the same cohort of white males). It was also noted that only 5 of the 66 top government positions in science are held by women. It was recommended that the government should tackle the potential problem of an inadequate S&E work force by:
- Using federal R&D programs to effect "a more diverse, world-class science and engineering work force."
- Collecting and maintaining data in order to evaluate the participation of women, minorities and disabled persons in those programs.
- Hiring and promoting scientists and engineers who are members of underrepresented groups.
- Providing dependent care services to all employees.
It was also determined that funds should be allocated to retain women, minorities and the disabled within the science education pipeline
.
Priority Issues
The most critical economical issue facing the U.S. is the diversification of the work force. Opportunities are growing for women in a wide range of R&D and S&E positions through postdoctoral appointments and employment policies.
Broader issues involve:
- "Glass ceiling" barriers to advancement of women scientists and engineers.
- The importance of mentoring and role models.
- Retention patterns for women.
- Problems in work environment for women at bachelor's and master's levels.
The CWSE seeks to integrate efforts to acknowledge and correct these problems.
Abstract by Juliet Midgley