What are the challenges faced by female faculty members in science and Engineering?
I think getting recognition for your work is the biggest challenge. My guess is men don’t think about nominating women colleagues as much as they think about nominating men. There needs to be a system in place to ensure salary equity and promotion equity. I think the younger female faculty members around here, of childbearing age, are very nervous about it…I think there’s a lot of worry about tenure. I’m a very productive and hard working person, and I could only write one paper the year I had my baby. Do you have any sage advice for women embarking on a career in science, or who already have tenure in a field where women are underrepresented? Something that I have not been so very good at is defending my right to be here, aggressively defending my position. If you have a view and you’re in a meeting, I think it’s important to make that view known, make sure that you’re heard, and that your ideas are recognized. Women need to watch out for each other, to make sure that they get appropr
