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The Gendered Academy

The Gendered Academy. Ruth Adams Department of Culture, Media & Creative Industries r uth.3.adams@kcl.ac.uk. Women in Universities. Women constitute 41% of academic staff, but only 19% of professors

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The Gendered Academy

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  1. The Gendered Academy Ruth Adams Department of Culture, Media & Creative Industries ruth.3.adams@kcl.ac.uk

  2. Women in Universities • Women constitute 41% of academic staff, but only 19% of professors • Women concentrated in ‘feminised’ disciplines: arts, humanities and social sciences • Small number of female senior academics make cultural change problematic • “Women who do become heads of department or professors find themselves allowed in (as individuals) to a culture which is shaped by men. They are always highly visible. Trying to help other women or change the climate itself in feminist directions is not easily accomplished.” (Sandra Acker, 1992)

  3. The Culture of Universities • Idea of gender discrimination in universities seems ‘unbelievable’ or ‘unspeakable’ • Ideal of universities as ‘liberal meritocracies’ makes it difficult to discuss, or even conceive of the effects of discrimination • Career structures are based on male norms • Competitive environment can lead to individualism and isolation

  4. The Hierarchy of Academic Work • ‘Feminized’ work is devalued. Therefore research is valued higher than teaching which is valued higher than pastoral/service activities • In research, publishing is valued higher than conference presentations, and journal articles more important than text books or popular media • Women often carry disproportionate burden of teaching and emotional labour – the ‘mummy track’ • Can women advance their careers without conforming to patriarchal norms? • Do we need a redefinition of scholarship?

  5. Why is Research So Prized? • Context of competition between universities – for students, resources, rankings and star academics • Is it related to visibility? • Visibility to whom?

  6. Hierarchies of Research • Journal articles least likely to be visible or to disseminate knowledge outside of a narrow interest group • Ratified by RAE/REF • Ideal of heroic, autonomous individualism • Collaborative research models discouraged • 2008 RAE only 48% of female permanent academic staff entered, compared to 67% of male • Is women’s relative lack of success due to a ‘misreading of the rules of academic life’? • Does challenging academic norms = career suicide?

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