Gender in Higher Education in Times of Uncertainty

Although promoting gender equality and inclusion is a priority of European Union policies and programmes, significant gender gaps remain in research and innovation. Various global crises such as climate change, pandemics, global conflicts and anti-feminist movements have exacerbated the situation of gender equality. Even though universities are hubs for innovation and progress on gender issues in terms of pedagogical mastery, research opportunities and strategic sustainability initiatives, the leaky pipeline and the glass ceiling for women researchers, especially at the professorial level, still exist. The project therefore consists of three parts.

Firstly, the research on gender perceptions among students and top management, based on interviews with professionals and a student survey, and its reflection in the internal legislation of three participating European universities will be completed.

Secondly, the preliminary results of the research on mentoring for female researchers, academics and leaders in times of uncertainty will be presented at the symposium within the European Conference on Educational Research “Education in an Age of Uncertainty: Remembering and Hoping for the Future” (University of Nicosia, 2024).

Thirdly, the publication of the results of the two research projects mentioned above as two open access articles in Q1 journals will be a milestone in the strengthening of the scientific cooperation between the three participating universities and the exchange of good practices in the promotion of women in higher education.

Our research enriches and strengthens the European Research Area with a transdisciplinary (sociology, law and education) approach to justice and inclusive societies with a focus on women scholars and leaders in higher education. In particular, our research promotes excellent early career researchers (doctoral and post-doctoral level) to maximise their employability in academic and non-academic fields through research on mentoring. In the future, we plan to pilot mentoring initiatives in consortium members.

This project is made possible through seed funding from the EUPeace Fund, an initial incentive launched to cultivate and develop interest across EUPeace communities in our network; by providing a first format for collaboration, the Fund equips participating researchers, educators, students and administrators with a practical tool for experimentation and active participation, employing a bottom-up approach that generates concrete information on the interests and needs of our communities and informs future collaborative initiatives.