Gender

Interstate universities drawn into scandal amid questions over how serial predator kept getting promoted

Chancellor fell on his sword after respecting victims’ pleas for confidentiality, accepting poor legal advice and swallowing ‘lies’ about sex scandals

Experts unimpressed by new attack on queer theory, post-colonial theory and other forms of ‘social justice scholarship’ by controversial authors

Obliging women to adopt ‘male’ characteristics is not just unfair – it also impoverishes university management, says Corinne Houart

Academic questions whether quotas are the best way to move towards equality

But in the new normal, the situation for female academics with children is even worse, says Enrica Maria Ferrara

Italian researchers behind much-criticised 2012 study request its withdrawal and apologise for ‘distress’ and ‘discontent’ caused

‘Every young student of science has had a fantasy about winning a Nobel prize,’ says one laureate – and ever more rival prizes are being established. But with a cast of thousands currently pursuing the holy grail of a vaccine for Covid-19, might awards committees finally jettison their problematic focus on lone genius, asks Jack Grove

‘Well-meaning’ codes of conduct do not lead to initiatives that make a difference, study finds

Sexual violence at the student level is being addressed, but what about when the perpetrator is a member of staff, asks Heather Savigny

Study attributes women’s feelings of unpreparedness at time of appointment to lack of confidence

Eugenia Cheng defies convention with her approach to teaching. The Chicago-based British mathematician tells Matthew Reisz why similar out-of-the-box thinking is required to improve gender equality

Too-high targets overburden female academics with administrative work and hold back their careers, research foundation concludes 

Study also shows that the most advantaged teenagers are more likely to apply to Oxford or Cambridge than the least advantaged

Survey in US and EU affirms gender gap in working time, but sees small children as bigger factor

Female representation in Asian academia’s senior ranks is low by international standards. There are some encouraging signs that the situation is being addressed, but might the disproportionate effect of the Covid-19 lockdowns on women undo the good work? Joyce Lau reports

Letter says Advance HE’s response to review of equality charter may fail to fully address concerns over administrative burden and inconsistency in decision-making

Crucial MP keeping an open mind but has ‘lots of concerns’ about Australian fee and subsidy reshuffle

Florida State University’s move triggers concern about impact on female employees, as coronavirus continues to spread

But data from UKRI show that fellowship success rates for women and BAME researchers are now higher than men and white academics 

Major data analysis of authorship patterns also finds gap is largest among youngest scholars 

Law professor who sits on Germany's constitutional court warns that far-right attacks on ‘weaker’ subjects would be followed by criticism of more mainstream disciplines

Unequal childcare burden blamed for fall in share of published research by women since schools shut, but funding bodies look to alleviate career impact

But auditing such efforts will be difficult, while unintended consequences are always a risk, warns Athene Donald

Female academics with children say they fear the pandemic lockdowns have affected their careers

Matthew Reisz reflects on the researchers who have brought us powerful stories about how gender manifests – from remote Himalayan villages to the nightclubs of the French Riviera

Universities pledge that women will not be disproportionately affected by the Covid-19 wrecking ball

More women than men named John are chancellors – but only just

The secretary of higher education for the state of New Jersey talks about her path to a career in policy, family history and handling racist attitudes at college

The problem is measuring all women, with or without children, against patriarchal standards, says Srila Roy

Women’s careers suffer as they pick up the pieces at work and home

The pandemic has worsened longstanding sexist and racist inequalities in science pushing many of us to say ‘I’m done’, write 35 female scientists 

Universities warn of harm to victims and protest the quick implementation of controversial new measures

The award-winning author and journalist on the essay that changed her life and why academic research revolves around men

Many universities are setting up ‘consent courses’ to reduce sexual assault and harassment on campus. Helen Lock attends one and considers a variety of views about their value and limitations

Several years ago, a few young men who identified as ‘involuntary celibate’ formed a self-help group. However, they went on to embrace vicious and sometimes murderous misogyny. Kaitlyn Regehr tells Ellie Bothwell why she felt impelled to explore their disturbing world

Reliance on formulas and philosophies giving way to complexity and case studies

Sexism, unthinking managerialism and toxic ‘them and us’ attitudes are still pervasive within UK universities, according to an anonymous academic who found the dissonances between her values, career expectations and lived reality too much to bear

Independent steering group says new processes must stop penalising those it is supposed to help and restore confidence in the award

Academics report being heckled, undermined and interrupted in book that questions association of loutish conduct exclusively with alcohol and sports teams

Analysis of THE World University Rankings data shows number of women leading highest-ranking institutions has risen slightly

Large-scale analysis of data on published research suggests female academics now outnumber men in some fields, but significant inequalities remain

With a new show in the pipeline, academics have many suggestions for plot lines and pitfalls to avoid

Even women with identical performance ratings to men suffer large pay deficits. This must be fixed, say Ann Brower and Alex James

Removing biases in the system may not be enough to achieve a truly equal gender balance, says Sun Young Lee 

Pressure to support diversity efforts and BAME students drives ethnic minority women to take on unrewarded duties to the detriment of their career progression and mental health, academics say

Years into the MeToo era, half of nation’s provinces lack campus-specific policy

Bristol deal also gives greater recognition to ‘good citizenship’ in promotion process and is seen as model for sector

But study shows that difference in career prospects between men and women is considerably smaller within academia compared with other sectors 

Impostor phenomenon is real, but its ubiquitous, misnamed cousin invites accusations that it is a fad or fantasy, says Theresa Simpkin

New Zealand analysis of ‘globally unique’ dataset repudiates common justifications for earnings disparities

Gender quotas have improved female representation on internal panels, but researchers have highlighted that the loss of research time slows career progression

Like the rest of society, universities have largely failed to consider the specific needs of menopausal women. Here, one scholar describes how this can lead to marginalisation and bullying – and why the issue is as important as the fight for maternity rights

Overseeing an Athena SWAN application convinced an anonymous academic that if tasks cannot be properly resourced, they should not be attempted at all

Data suggest US campuses pushed by 2011 policy into tougher line on accused in sex cases, potentially triggering Trump rethink

Regulator proposes rules that, if breached, could lead to fines for institutions

Sussex philosophy professor on why she continues to speak out despite facing online abuse and ‘hostile environment’ at work

Study says comments such as ‘she should be in the kitchen, not writing papers’ affect the careers of under-represented groups

Two prominent cases signal higher-level response to abuses on campus

Universities concede societal push to handle delicate matters in more legalistic ways