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The paper examines a 'circulatory' system of gender inequity in Australian universities where gender bias prevents women from accessing senior decision-making roles and stultifies their capacity to act as gender change agents. It has been mooted that equity quotas for senior roles can derail this circuit of male privilege in academia. Yet a plastic reading of the shape of gender equity policy and practice in Australian universities over the last 40 years reveals an increasing acceptance of individualism, which positions women's liberation as being achievable through self-responsibilisation. If these discourses remain unchallenged, gender quotas for senior roles alone will likely only benefit those entrepreneurial women admitted to senior positions, rendering the causes of gender inequity hidden and exonerated. Using a novel methodology that combines a 'plastic' with a complex systems lens of policy manoeuvres, we suggest gender quotas, accompanied by strategy designed to develop leaders' gender competency and change agency, are required to support more sustainably equitable work structure within the academy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite improvements in gender equity within higher education nationally, underrepresentation in women's leadership persists in Christian higher education. As women in leadership navigate the context of member institutions of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU), characteristics of evangelical culture (e.g., theological views of gender, traditional gender role expectations) may at times impede these relationships across gender; however, some evidence has suggested that women who attained a presidency within a CCCU institution have identified male advocates to be influential in their leadership journeys. The purpose of this study was to examine the experiences of men who had been identified by women presidents of CCCU institutions as having been advocates in their leadership identity development and journeys. This article explored the findings of a hermeneutic phenomenological analysis of data from interviews with 14 male participants nominated by women presidents of CCCU institutions across North America. The findings of this study centered on three themes: (a) the pursuit of theological congruence, (b) gender blind, the double bind, and being first, and (c) pragmatism and persuasion. Based on these findings, the interdependence of organizational culture, self-awareness, and the social construction of a leadership identity through reciprocal relationships was discussed. Implications for practice include recommendations for evaluating institutional contexts and personal biases, as well as cultivating reciprocal relationships between women and men. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The challenges of raising the participation of women as leaders in higher education globally have been extensively but unevenly documented. Potential has been identified for international developmental networks to support an increasing presence of women as leaders in emerging higher education systems. Through an exploration of shared experiences and learnings in a specific developmental network of women, and some men, from universities in Papua New Guinea and Australia, the wider implications of local challenges became visible. A Collaborative Research Culture Framework has been used to highlight key collaborative principles that enable and enhance women's participation in higher education. The authors have framed their theoretical exploration of the issues informed by their own experiences of collaborating to overcome challenges faced by women participating in higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Australia, the number of female graduates in some science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines is as low as 15%. Previous reviews exploring the issues affecting female undergraduate STEM students are primarily based in North America and there is yet to be an Australian focused review. This review identifies the factors contributing to the gendered experience of Australian undergraduate STEM students. A systematic review was conducted in November – December 2018 using ERIC, PsycInfo, ProQuest and Scopus databases. From this review, 36 papers that focus on gender differences and university STEM students in Australia were identified. The Australian research suggests the most prominent issue for female STEM students is their lower self-efficacy. Gendered preferences for learning, gendered motivations to pursue STEM degrees, the masculine culture of these fields and gender differences in science identity were also themes identified through the review. This review indicates some gaps in the Australian literature, namely that identity, and other emotional factors, are understudied in the Australian context and an avenue for future research. The findings suggest that science educators should be aware of the gendered experiences of their students to ensure female persistence in university STEM degrees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Issues of gender imbalance in leadership have long been a significant issue in universities, as is the case across most industries. This paper explores the experiences of seven females who have successfully achieved senior leadership positions at a regional university in Australia. While the experiences of these women differ in many ways, there are certainly similarities in the challenges and adversities that they have faced, and their perceptions of what has allowed them to experience success in their leadership roles. This paper provides a number of recommendations for women aspiring to be leaders in higher education, such as committing to ongoing development, taking opportunities when presented, developing resilience, developing a track record, and seeking support, and also recommendations for institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Gender inequity in leadership and management roles within the higher education sector remains a widespread problem. Researchers have suggested that a multi-pronged method is the preferred approach to reach and maintain gender equity over time. A large university faculty undertook an audit to gauge the level of gender equity on the senior decision-making committees. As a result, a gender equity initiative was launched throughout the faculty. Gender equity was then measured a year later. The results showed some improvements in gender equity on committees at the faculty level and within some of the schools of the faculty. In some schools, gender representation became more unequal. The results highlight the importance of specific gender equity policies that can be translated easily into practice and that have leadership support. This case study shows that a modest gain in gender equity is possible if the appropriate institutional and local supports are available. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Organisational efforts to alter gender asymmetries are relatively rare, yet they are taking place in a number of universities. In the USA, sponsored by the National Science Foundation, ADVANCE programmes implement a number of interventions to improve the recruitment, retention, and advancement of women faculty. This study focused on one common intervention, faculty peer networks, and the role they play in gender equity reform. Longitudinal and cross-sectional qualitative data indicate that such peer networks function as catalysts for women's career agency, and challenge gendered organisational practices. Two key features of the peer networks, their structure and internal dynamics, facilitate these outcomes. At the same time, peer networks are limited by design in promoting structural change and must be implemented in concert with other forms of policy and structural change to be effective mechanisms for gender equity reform. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the assertion that higher education is becoming increasingly ‘feminised’ and that male students are the relative losers, gendered meanings continue to permeate higher education in ways that mean that the recognition of women's experiences are frequently marginalised. Our paper reports on research designed to explore student participation in extra-curricular activity from a perspective informed by a broader conceptualisation of the extra-curricular as a site of gendered, raced, and class practices intimately tied to the development of an employable self. We found that women frequently undervalue their participation and are more likely to be dismissive of extra-curricular activity as of value to their employability than men and that they rarely consider caring to be a form of capital which can be utilised or invested in to support their future employment. We argue that higher education institutions need to support students, in particular women, to recognise the value of their participation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite an appreciation of the need to increase gender sensitivity and awareness among tertiary students in the field of science, engineering and technology (SET), there is a paucity of research that explores how students in this field construct gender. A greater understanding of such constructions can assist in transforming gender relations and creating a more gender-sensitive learning environment for SET students. This paper explores SET students' constructions of gender and the discourses they draw on when constructing female participation in SET. Focus group discussions were conducted with male and female students from an urban South African university. A discourse analysis identified various restrictive discourses that resist female participation in SET and value traditional gender roles for men and women, as well as more marginal voices that support gender equity. The paper concludes with recommendations for interventions aimed at challenging restrictive constructions of gender in higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Central Asia, the post-Soviet transformation period has been accompanied by significant economic and social costs, including the widening of the gender gaps in politics, economy and the social sphere. Tajikistan, which receives the largest amount of international aid and has the worst record of gender inequity in Central Asia, has quickly responded to the worsening situation by introducing quotas favoring female representation in politics, labor market and education. This article examines the context within which international gender equity norms were introduced in the 1990s as well as the factors that account for the variation in implementation of these policies. By using the case study of Tajikistan, this article suggests that the introduction of policies favoring female participation in political, economic and social life has largely depended on the transfer of international discourses on gender equality, while their implementation has been halted by historical legacies, economic realities and local political factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At a time when more and more natural science subjects are attracting an increasing number of women (chemistry for example) physics remains a male stronghold. It is not easy to understand this phenomenon or the anomaly that over-representation of males in physics faculties is more likely to occur in countries known for their attempts at equalizing opportunities for women. Sweden, for example, has a parliament in which 40% of its members are women and yet the average percentage of women lecturers in physics faculties is about half of that. In Sweden today women professors of physics (both appointed and promoted) typically represent 10% or less of the total professorial staff. In this paper we report on a qualitative case study of gender equity in a large physics faculty in a Swedish university. In order to locate our study in a more general social and political context we look at Swedish legislation that seeks to equalize opportunities for women in higher education. The rest of the study focuses on a brief review of research in the area of gender issues in higher education and an analysis of interviews with three women in physics: one a professor, one a lecturer and the third a PhD student. The analysis discusses why the current disproportion exists, if it is a good or bad thing for physics and physicists and how one might rectify any perceived problems in terms or gender relations and gender equity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]