Topics Women and geology at: UK universities: 1985-1990 BOB WARD A report by Moore and Wybrow for the Equal Opportunities Commission in 1984 concluded that North Sea oil was a male-dominated industry and that this was not solely attributable to ‘almost uriiversal discrimination against women’ by companies operating in the UK sector, but was also due to the fact that only a small number of women applied for jobs in the industry. These findings had a particular significance for female geology graduates, because the oil industry was (and still is today) the most common destination for geologists who obtained employment related to their degree following graduation. The report went on to note that the under-representation of women in this area was partly the result of ‘a life- long process which discourages girls from following a scientific or technical education and which lowers their educational aspirations, and their expectal ions of employment in the best-paid and most techinically challenging work. Parents, schools, universitiies and colleges bear a responsibility for this state of affairs.’ Moore and Wybrow made particular reference to the role of university geology departments in encouraging female students. They found from interviews with final-year female undergradual es that ‘the masculine culture of departments was universally recognized: there is a sense in which women have to become honorary men in order to survive as students.’ The authors suggested that geology at UK universities was, as in the oil industry, a male-dominated field. The purpose of this study is to assess whether there has been any change in the representation of women in UK university geology departments since the EOC report was published. This task has been attempted through an analysis of statistics provided by the Universities Statistical Record (USR) for the period 1985-90. The implications of these findings for the employment of female graduate geologists are briefly considered with the aid of data published by the careers service for all UK universities. Geology graduates 1985-90 The percentage of women among new graduates in geology (single subject) increased from 21.5% :in 1985 to 24.7% in 1990 (Fig. l), continuing the trend of the previous decade. It should be noted, however, that this rise resulted from a decline in the numbers of male graduates by nearly 18%, while the numbers of Geology first degree new graduates Universities 1985-90 cn Q a U en c a 2 B Q c 0 Q c L n E a z 0 IC 0, (D hl v) (D 0 0 (D €0 €0 In Male Female 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 female graduates did not change significantly. Despite this small but steady increase, it is clear that there are still proportionately many fewer female than male students undertaking geology at UK universities. The reasons for this are probably the same as those cited for other scientific subjects, namely, a lack of interest in science among schoolgirls (see Kelly, 1981, for a full treatment of this issue). As a major imbalance towards males in the subject is introduced at school level, it is not surprising that women are so poorly represented throughout the rest of geology. Of those new graduates who were available for employment, there is a marked difference between the sexes, with a higher proportion of male than female graduates obtaining geological jobs (Fig. 2). Fig. 1. Numbers of male and female new graduates, geology first degree (single 2z& ! i 85-90 . Data from at UK uiver- 70 8o 1 J 0) en 60: 10 - Fig. 2. Percentages of male and female new graduates, geology first degree (single subject), who were available for employment, obtaining geological jobs after graduation, 1985-90, UK universities. Data from Bottomley, 1992; Caswell and Kenna, 1985; Kenna, 1986,1987,1988; Robson. 1989. “I 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 Percentageof geology first degree male new graduates (who were available for employment) obtalnlng geological jobs Percentage of geology first degree female new graduates (who were avallable for employment) obtaining geological jobs I - GEOLOGY TODAY September-October 19921 185
Transcript
Topics
Women and geology at: UK universities: 1985 -1990
BOB WARD
A report by Moore and Wybrow for the Equal Opportunities Commission in 1984 concluded that North Sea oil was a male-dominated industry and that this was not solely attributable to ‘almost uriiversal discrimination against women’ by companies operating in the UK sector, but was also due to the fact that only a small number of women applied for jobs in the industry. These findings had a particular significance for female geology graduates, because the oil industry was (and still is today) the most common destination for geologists who obtained employment related to their degree following graduation. The report went on to note that the under-representation of women in this area was partly the result of ‘a life- long process which discourages girls from following a scientific or technical education and which lowers their educational aspirations, and their expectal ions of employment in the best-paid and most techinically challenging work. Parents, schools, universitiies and colleges bear a responsibility for this state of affairs.’
Moore and Wybrow made particular reference to the role of university geology departments in encouraging female students. They found from interviews with final-year female undergradual es that ‘the masculine culture of departments was universally recognized: there is a sense in which women have to become honorary men in order to survive as students.’ The authors suggested that geology at UK universities was, as in the oil industry, a male-dominated field.
The purpose of this study is to assess whether there has been any change in the representation of women in UK university geology departments since the EOC report was published. This task has been attempted through an analysis of statistics provided by the Universities Statistical Record (USR) for the period 1985-90. The implications of these findings for the employment of female graduate geologists are briefly considered with the aid of data published by the careers service for all UK universities.
Geology graduates 1985-90 The percentage of women among new graduates in geology (single subject) increased from 21.5% :in 1985 to 24.7% in 1990 (Fig. l), continuing the trend of the previous decade. It should be noted, however, that this rise resulted from a decline in the numbers of male graduates by nearly 18%, while the numbers of
Geology first degree new graduates Universities 1985-90
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female graduates did not change significantly. Despite this small but steady increase, it is clear that there are still proportionately many fewer female than male students undertaking geology at UK universities. The reasons for this are probably the same as those cited for other scientific subjects, namely, a lack of interest in science among schoolgirls (see Kelly, 1981, for a full treatment of this issue). As a major imbalance towards males in the subject is introduced at school level, it is not surprising that women are so poorly represented throughout the rest of geology.
Of those new graduates who were available for employment, there is a marked difference between the sexes, with a higher proportion of male than female graduates obtaining geological jobs (Fig. 2 ) .
Fig. 1. Numbers of male and female new graduates, geology first degree (single
2z&!i85-90. Data from at UK uiver-
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0) en 60:
10 - Fig. 2. Percentages of male and female new graduates, geology first degree (single subject), who were available for employment, obtaining geological jobs after graduation, 1985-90, UK universities. Data from Bottomley, 1992; Caswell and Kenna, 1985; Kenna, 1986,1987,1988; Robson. 1989.
“ I
1 9 8 5 1 9 8 6 1 9 8 7 1 9 8 8 1 9 8 9 1 9 9 0
Percentage of geology first degree male new graduates (who were available for employment) obtalnlng geological jobs
Percentage of geology first degree female new graduates (who were avallable for employment) obtaining geological jobs
I - GEOLOGY TODAY September-October 19921 185
Representation of women in geology at various levels within universities
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1984-85 1985-86 1986-87 1987-88 1988-89 1989-90
Women as a percentage of first degree graduates who
Women as a percentage of first degree new graduates
Women as a percentage of higher degree home new graduates
Women as a percentage of full-time academic staff
Immediately go on to higher degree study or research - - Without information about the career intentions of new graduates it is impossible to be certain whether this disparity is the result of discrimination by geological employers against women or because proportionately fewer female graduates actually attempt to find jobs which are related to their degrees. This gap between male and female graduates increased nearly fivefold during the period 1986 to 1990.
One trend which contrasts with those illustrated in Fig. 2 can be identified from Fig. 3. This shows that the proportion of female first-degree graduates in geology who immediately go on to higher-degree study or research (MSc or PhD) is higher than the proportion of male graduates who choose such an option (since the percentage of women among new graduates continuing with their studies is higher than Fig. 4. Numbers of male
and female new graduates, the percentage of women among the total of first- geology higher degree, degree graduates in geology). This slightly greater including students, preference by female graduates compared to male UK universities, 1985-90. graduates for higher degrees, however, does not Data from the USR. account for the differences recorded in Fig. 2.
500 - 400 -
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Geology higher degree new graduates Univers i t ies 1985-90
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Fig. 3. Representation of women in geology at various levels within UK universities, for academic years 1984-85 to 1989-90. Women as a percentage of new graduates, geology first degree (single subject), who immediately go on higher- degree study or research at UK universities; women as a percentage of new graduates, geology first degree (single subject); women as a percentage of home-based new graduates, geology higher degree; women as a percentage of full-time academic staff as at 31 December of first year stated. Data from the USR.
A further complication is revealed when the results described above are compared with the breakdown of the numbers of higher-degree graduates, shown in Fig. 4. Whilst 22-33% of female new graduates went on to start higher degrees each year between 1985 and 1990, the percentages of new female graduates who gained higher degrees during the same period are noticeably smaller. These data are distorted by the fact that there was a substantial influx of male overseas postgraduates into UK university geology departments during these years. When the figures for students based in the UK are considered on their own, however, there is still a significant difference, even after allowing for a time-lag of up to four years between the start and completion of an MSc or PhD. This discrepancy between the fraction of female graduates embarking on higher degrees and women actually graduating with higher degrees in geology can be seen to be of the order of 10% in Fig. 3.
There are a number of possible explanations for this situation, which would require further investigation before their degree of accuracy could be established. Firstly, these figures only represent UK universities, and it is possible that there is a net influx of male UK geology postgraduates from other sources such as polytechnics, industry or other first-degree subjects. Secondly, of those first-degree graduates who go on to higher degrees, a higher proportion of women than of men may choose subjects other than geology or study at institutions other than universities (USR statistics show that female graduates are less likely than their male counterparts to embark on higher degrees abroad). This would cause a net outflow of women postgraduates from the subject. Finally, and the most disturbing explanation of all, it could be that pro- portionately fewer women than men successfully complete their higher degrees, since the data in Figs 3 and 4 are for higher-degree graduates only.
The reduction in the numbers between female graduates going on to higher degrees and those completing MScs and PhDs represents the first storey of a pyramid for women within geology at UK universities, in which they become disproportionately more under-represented at virtually each successive level of seniority within the academic hierarchy.
A further study is needed to account for the loss of female geologists between higher-degree and lecturer level (Fig. 3). Between 1985 and 1990, an average 17.2% of new graduates with higher degrees in geology who accepted post-doctoral academic appointments were women. This is approximately the same as the average percentage of new female graduates who gained higher degrees during that period.
It seems pertinent at this point to consider further why proportionately fewer female than male "
obtain geological jobs immediately after their studies, and why relatively fewer women successfully complete higher degrees in geology. As the report by Moore and Wybrow noted: 'One important aspect of the experience of female students is the lack of contact with women professional geologists. Women are encountered as Research Assistants, Geological Museum curators and only occasionally as members of academic staff.' This scarcity of successful female role models in geology, both in academi,a and industry, may be a crucial factor for those women who eventually decide to desert the subject even after they have endured the discouraging influences of their schooldays to pursue an interest in geology.
Geology academic staff 1984-90 Women constituted approximately 5% of academic staff in geology at UK universities between 1984 and 1990 (Figs 3 and 5). The percentage increased from 4.3 in 1984 to a peak of 6.6 in 1988, before decreasing to the 1990 level of 4.9%.
Obviously, with women making up such a small proportion of the total of academic staff, the numbers of female staff at every grade of seniority will be small. However, Fig. 6 shows that women are even more disproportionately under-represented at the top levels of the academic hierarchy in geology. Whilst about half of the male staff were at a level of senior lecturer, reader or professor in the period 1984-90, the proportion of female staff at these grades fell from 5.3 to 3.6% between 1984 and 1988, increasing to 9.1% by 1990. These percentages tend to give a dightly false impression of the scale of women's absence from the upper echelons; the rise between 1988 anld 1989 was due to an increase from 1 to 2 in the number of senior female academic staff!
The late Janet Watson was the only female Professor of Geology in the history of UK univer- sities, having held a personal chair at Imperial College from 1974 until her death in 1985 (she is not included in the USR statistics for 1984). She was also the only female President of the Geological Society of L,ondon (1982-84) and was the sole female Earth scientist to be made a Fellow of the Royal Society (1979)
When the data from Fig. 6 are compared with those of other cost centres (e.g. see 1992 report from the Association of University Teachers), it is apparent that a higher proportion of female academic staff in geology occupy senior positions tlhan in physics or chemistry. These numbers also reveal, however, that a higher percentage of male academic staff in geology hold senior positions than in any other university cost centre. This would suggest that the salary difference between female and male academcs in geology is even greater than the overall national average differential (female academics earn 838.9% of male academic salaries according to the 1992 AUT report).
In order to find out why female academic staff should be concentrated in less senior aca- demic positions, the role of age must be considered. Fig. 7 indicates that more than half of the senior posts are occupied by staff older than 49 years of age. Although more than a third of male academic staff are aged 50 or over, only one female member of staff occupied this age band (until 1990, when the number doubled).
Fig. 8 shows the relative percentages of staff under 35 years of age. These figures are especially significant because less than 1% of all senior staff between 1984 and 1990 were younger than 35. Until 1988 almost half of all female academic staff in geology were under 35 compared to 15% or less of male staff. In 1989 and 1990 the gap between the number of male and female staff in this age band narrowed. The proportion of male staff under 35 increased by over 6% from the 1988 level. This corresponded to a rise in the overall number of male staff (see Fig. 5'1, indicating an influx of men into professional academic geology. In contrast, the proportion of female staff under 35 fell by over 7%, and was matched by an overall decrease in the number of female staff. This is a particularly depressing trend because it suggests that in the two most recent years for which figpres are available, more female staff have been deserting academic geology than have been joining it, reversing the trend of the past five years.
It therefore seems likely that women are poorly represented among the senior academic staff because the majority of female academics are younger than
Fig. 5. Numbers of male and female full-time academic staff in geology, UK universities as at 31 December for each year 1985-90. Data from the USR.
Fig. 6. Percentages of male and female full-time academic staff in geology at level of senior lecturer, reader or professor, UK universities as at 3 1 December for each year 1985-90. Data from the USR.
- Y Percentage of staff at level of senior lecturer, reader
or professor over 49 years of age - Percentage of male staff over 49 years’ of age
1 Percentage of female staff over 49 years of age
Fig. 7 . Percentages of all, male and female full-time academic staff in geology over 49 years of age, UK universities as at 3 1 December for each year 1985-90. Data from the USR.
Fig. 8. Percentages of male and female full-time academic staff in geology under 35 years of age, UK universities as at 31 December for each year 1985-90. Data from the USR.
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their male counterparts. Without further information it is only possible to speculate about the reasons for the relatively young average age of female academic staff. It is probable that this reflects the fact that even fewer women than now entered academic geology 20 or 30 years ago. It cannot be ruled out, however, that female staff could tend to leave the profession at an earlier age (to raise a family, for example) thereby eliminating the opportunity for promotion to a senior post, or that they leave academia because they believe that the prospect of promotion is so remote under the current academic regime.
Conclusions It is apparent that women are under-represented among both students and academic staff at UK university geology departments. Furthermore, the degree of under-representation increases dispropor- tionately at each successive level of the academic hierarchy. Thus although just under 25% of new geology graduates in 1990 were women, there were
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only two full-time female members of academic staff who occupied senior posts and no female professors of geology.
Despite a small but steady increase in the percent- age of women among first-degree new gradutes since 1984, the numbers of female students in geology remain low, probably owing to the subject’s relative lack of popularity among schoolgirls (although it is more popular than physics or chemistry). Therefore any serious attempts to increase significantly the numbers of women in geology at any level need to be concentrated on encouraging schools to present geology (and science in general) as a subject and career in which both men and women can be equally successful.
There has been a very slight improvement in the representation of women at virtually all levels since 1984. This progress, however, is being made at a slow pace and, indeed, the trends were reversed in 1989 and 1990 for female higher-degree graduates and female academic staff. It is interesting to note that there is a vigorous campaign in North America to create equal opportunities for women in the geological sciences (Simarski, 1992). In 1990, about a third (compared to just a quarter in the UK) of geoscience degrees in the United States were awarded to women.
Academic geologists must discover why women continue to leave the subject in disproportionate numbers after completing their first degrees. Why are female graduates still less likely than their male contemporaries to obtain geological jobs? Why are they less likely to obtain higher degrees in geology? Do female academic staff leave the profession earlier than their male colleagues? Geologists at university geology departments must begin to ask themselves these questions and seek to find the answers. Only then will they be able to claim that they are working towards equal opportunities for men and women.
Suggestions for further reading Association of University Teachers. 1992.
Sex Discrimination in Universities. London. Caswell, P. & Kenna, R. 1985. Graduate geological
scientists’ survey - 1985. British Geologist, v. 12, pp. 144-146.
Bottomley, A. 1992. Graduate geological scientists’ survey 1990. Geoscientist, v. 2, no. 2, pp. 17-19.
Kelly, A. 1981. The Missing Half: Girls and Science Eduction. Manchester University Press.
Kenna, R. 1986. Graduate geological scientists’ survey 1986. British Geologist, v. 13, pp. 158-159.
Kenna, R. 1987. Graduate geological scientists’ survey 1987. British Geologist, v. 14, pp. 137-138.
Kenna, R. 1988. Graduate geological scientists’ survey 1988. British Geologist, v. 15, pp. 169-170.
Moore, R. & Wybrow, P. 1984. Women in the North Sea Oil Industry. Equal Opportunities Com- mission. Manchester .
Robson, G. 1989. Graduate geological scientists’ survey 1989. British Geologist, v. 16, pp. 136-137.
Simarski, L. T. 1992. Examining sexism in the geo- sciences. Eos, Transactions, American Geophysical Union, v. 73, p. 258.
Bob Ward is at the Department of Geology, University of Manchester.
1 8 8 l G E O L O G Y T O D A Y September-October 1992
