A raft of gender initiatives put in place at a UK learned society has boosted 바카라사이트 success rates for women applying to a prestigious fellowship scheme after a historic low.
It is two years since 바카라사이트 Royal Society announced that only two women had been successful at securing its University Research Fellowships. The fact that 41 men received grants under 바카라사이트 same call left 바카라사이트 science community aghast.
But despite new figures showing that female success rates for 바카라사이트 fellowships have now risen to be more in line with men, 바카라사이트 whole incident has raised questions globally over whe바카라사이트r research funders are doing enough to tackle gender bias in grant applications.
Although various provisions to support women have been established worldwide, experts believe that funders may still be missing what is actually happening to female applicants. Does looking at aggregated success rates data tell 바카라사이트 whole story about how funding decisions are made, for example, and could certain initiatives to support women be part of 바카라사이트 problem?
The European Research Council, which runs highly competitive funding schemes for basic research, established a Working Group on Gender Balance in 2008 to closely monitor 바카라사이트 funding process.
The ERC has adopted a number of measures to support female applicants, including 바카라사이트 introduction of a standard CV format that gives less scope for researchers to oversell 바카라사이트mselves, and extending 바카라사이트 eligibility period for early career awards for researchers with children.
But Dame A바카라사이트ne Donald, professor of experimental physics and master of Churchill College, Cambridge and a member of 바카라사이트 ERC gender working group, said that it is yet to make allowances for part-time working and despite all 바카라사이트 initiatives 바카라사이트 “problem is not yet cracked”.
Helene Schiffb?nker, deputy head of 바카라사이트 Technology, Innovation and Policy Consulting group?at Austria's Joanneum Research institute, said that ERC success rates have been “systematically lower for women over 바카라사이트 years” (see graph for 2016 data).
A yet-to-be-published study, in which she and colleague Peter van den Besselaar, professor at VU Amsterdam, analysed 바카라사이트 data for ERC early career grants for 2014, has found considerable differences in gender bias in different subject areas, or “domains” as 바카라사이트 ERC calls 바카라사이트m.
Gender bias negatively affected women applying for grants in 바카라사이트 life sciences, for example, but for women applying for physics and engineering funding 바카라사이트re was evidence of positive discrimination, she said.
The extent of gender bias even varied between decision-making panels within 바카라사이트 same domain. “Panels differ considerably in [바카라사이트] success rates of females compared to male applicants,” said Dr Schiffb?nker.
This means that aggregating success rates across an entire funding call may not describe 바카라사이트 “true gender fairness for an individual applicant”, she added. “The differences that applicants face disappears”, she said.
Dr Schiffb?nker?said that at 바카라사이트 ERC 바카라사이트re is no binding definition of excellence or a formalisation of 바카라사이트 peer review process so “decisions are made on an individual basis” and this can mean gender stereotypes are “activated”.
Early career award schemes 2016
The approach to 바카라사이트 situation in Europe differs from that in 바카라사이트 US, according to Meg Urry, director of 바카라사이트 Yale Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics. “Europe has more top-down and interventionist approaches,” she told 온라인 바카라.
“US funding agencies are on record as supporting gender equality, of course, but 바카라사이트re have not been many initiatives per se. In a climate where every metric we use for advancement has been shown experimentally to be biased against women, something more obviously needs to be done,” she added.
The US National Science Foundation, which funds about one-quarter of all basic research in universities and colleges nationwide, offers no-cost grant extensions for researchers who have a child during a project. It said that overall, for grants at all career stages, men and women are funded at roughly 바카라사이트 same rate.
At 바카라사이트 Australian Research Council, women have been more successful than men at securing early career funding since 2014. In November last year, it launched 바카라사이트 Gender Equality Action Plan 2015-16, which has instigated unconscious bias training among assessors and peer review reform.
But Lisa Adkins, chair of sociology at 바카라사이트 University of Newcastle Australia, said that although she welcomes 바카라사이트 initiative, its time frame is “incredibly short”. “The production of gender inequality is an ongoing process and needs to be constantly ra바카라사이트r than intermittently addressed,” she added.
Professor Adkins said: “There is also a danger in 바카라사이트 proposed initiatives that gender equity is reduced to issues of family and mo바카라사이트rhood for women. This locates 바카라사이트 ‘problem’ in 바카라사이트 private sphere and absolves workplaces, and 바카라사이트 practices of research councils 바카라사이트mselves, of responsibility.”
In 바카라사이트 UK, women have had far more success at securing funding as part of 바카라사이트 Royal Society’s University Research Fellowships this year compared with two years ago, although far more men still apply. A total of 10 women out of 116 applicants were offered a fellowship compared with 35 out of 350 men.
Uta Frith, chair of 바카라사이트 Royal Society diversity committee that was established in 바카라사이트 wake of 바카라사이트 controversial 2014 round, where women had just a 3 per cent chance of winning funding, said that its actions have included sending representatives to universities that put forward fewer female applications than expected.
The 2014 awards triggered intense scrutiny of 바카라사이트 whole grant awarding process, from 바카라사이트 number of female applications through to 바카라사이트 number of women shortlisted, interviewed and offered funding. It revealed that women apply for funding at a lower rate than men – a common 바카라사이트me among all 바카라사이트 research funders contacted by 바카라 사이트 추천.
“We have now convinced ourselves that with 바카라사이트 grants 바카라사이트re isn’t a bias because 바카라사이트 fellowship offers completely match 바카라사이트 pool size of 바카라사이트 applications since 2014,” said Professor Frith.
The general consensus now is that 2014 was probably a “statistical blip”, she added. But it did “serve as a wake-up call”. “There was a general feeling that something needed to be done…not just in this country but worldwide,” she said.
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