“One woman gave a lecture the same day she gave birth, which I felt was completely ridiculous....”

“You follow the same path in doing a particular task as the men that you’ve seen do it, and then you get slapped on the wrist:...‘This is not the way we do it.’...I just saw five men do it and...nothing was said!”

“[Sometimes you do] not ask[] for something because...[y]ou don’t want to look like a bitch.

Gender Bias in Academia

Gender bias still exists in academia. Sad to say, the above quotes are from focus groups conducted by WorkLife Law in 2007 and 2008. In fact, among full professors at all institutions nationwide in 2005-2006, women held 24% of the positions and men held 76%—with the lowest percentages of women in the most prestigious and highest paid faculty jobs.*

These webpages summarize hundreds of social psychology studies into news you can use, whether you are:

• a woman wondering if it’s bias or your imagination;
• a department chair wondering why you lost that perfect candidate to a lesser-ranked institution; or
• an administrator who feels you can’t keep footing the bill when a department is losing one woman after another.

There are common, recognizable patterns of gender bias.

Research shows that gender bias falls into four basic patterns that arise again and again. Click on each pattern below to learn more.

The Maternal Wall: When women encounter severe bias once they have children.
Double Standards: When women have to work harder to establish competence.
Double Binds: When the job requires a 'go getter' but assertive women are seen as 'difficult.' 
Gender Wars: When gender bias pits women against each other.

Why Does Gender Bias in Academia Matter?

Losing women is expensive. Average start-up packages for scientists are often $300,000 to $500,000 or more. If a department loses one woman after another, these costs add up fast. Click here to learn more about the Economics of Retaining Women in Academia.

Is it Possible to Retain Women in Academia?

Your rival institutions may already use best-practice policies to retain their most promising women. Click here for Effective Practices to Retain Women in Academic Institutions.

Read Our Focus Group Findings

Read our report of findings from focus groups we conducted with women faculty members, Breaking Through Glass Ceilings and Maternal Walls in Academia.

Join Our Blog

• Do you feel you have encountered gender bias?
• Do you feel that the prevalence of gender bias has been exaggerated?
• What are successful ways to respond when you think bias played a role...and when you know it didn’t?

Join our blog and share your experiences with others. All identifying contact information will be kept confidential.

Get Our Reading List

Download our bibliography of selected relevant articles on gender bias in academia.

* Martha S. West and John W. Curtis, AAUP Faculty Gender Indicators 2006, American Association of University Professors, pp. 7-10 (2006).