Whilst young scientists working in academia today might face huge problems, women within that group face larger problems still, many of which we cover across Naturejobs. To mark International Women’s Day 2018, here’s some of our coverage of women in science and the hurdles they face.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdfqXdibc0k
Gender pay gap persists
Pay disparities between female and male PhD holders in the United States exist across almost all fields of science and engineering, according to a National Science Foundation report.
A guide to juggling fieldwork and pregnancy
It can be tricky to plan and carry on fieldwork when you’re pregnant, but there are ways to smooth the path, argues Emily Sohn.
Women in science: Fight the brain drain
Science has a problem. Women working in this area don’t get the credit they deserve. They get paid less. They face discrimination. They face funding disparities. Perhaps unsurprisingly, given the above, they leave. We catch up with some 2017 winners of the L’Oreal-UNESCO Women in Science funding initiatives, which aim to counter the factors that push women out of science.
Muireann Irish on celebrating diversity in science
Professor Irish — another beneficiary of the L’Oreal-UNESCO initiatives — shares her thoughts on diversity in science.
A pair of studies highlight another set of differences between female and male researchers
Women were less keen about jobs when the descriptions emphasized the importance of brilliance by using terms like “intellectual firecracker” and “sharp, penetrating mind.” But when descriptions of the same options used language such as “great focus and determination” — words that highlighted the importance of hard work and dedication — the interest from women grew significantly.
Career-changing encounters
Cristina Lo Celso is the first woman to receive the UK Academy of Medical Sciences Foulkes Foundation Medal since it was launched in 2007. We ask her about her career.
Babies or career: How to keep young researchers in science
Could shared postdocs improve work-life balance and make academia more attractive for early career scientists, asks Naturejobs journalism competition winner Ulrike Träger in this blog post.
Podcast: Family life, career life: making it work
In this podcast we share Paula Littlejohn’s story. Paula started her microbiology PhD at the University of British Columbia, Canada, a year ago, after a decade in industry and having five children. We find out how she juggled the demands of an academic career alongside motherhood.
Does gender matter?
Transgender neurobiologist Ben Barres (Barrnes transitioned from Barbara to Ben in 1997) shared his personal perspective as a man and a woman in science in Nature in 2006.”Shortly after I changed sex,” he writes, “a faculty member was heard to say “Ben Barres gave a great seminar today, but then his work is much better than his sister’s.”