February 22, 2016

Boost for gender equity as molecular masters move up the ranks

Women conquer traditionally male dominated field of chemistry.

Furthering its reputation as a national leader in gender equity, UOW is close to achieving a 50:50 gender split in the number of chemistry academics at Associate Professor level. 

In the recent round of academic promotions, UOW promoted three rising chemistry stars to the position of Associate Professor, boosting the number of female academics at that senior level to 45 per cent and making it the only chemistry school in Australia with four female Associate Professors. 

National figures show women comprise more than half of science PhD graduates and early career researchers, yet they account for less than one in five (17 per cent) at the senior academic level. And while there is a way to go to reach full gender parity (currently there is only one female at Professor level in chemistry), Executive Dean of the Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health Professor Alison Jones said she was thrilled to see the talented STEM-focused women coming up through the ranks. 

“Chemists are essential in our modern world. They are at the forefront of discovering new drugs for cancer and to combat superbugs. They are the ones developing nanomaterials for clean energy and robotics," Professor Jones, herself an eminent toxicologist who has advised the British and Australian agencies on the potential dangers of a variety of chemicals, said.  

“It’s very pleasing to see so many strong female chemistry academics progressing their careers at UOW.” 

Glennys O’Brien (pictured above right), a teaching-intensive academic who is Director of First Year Studies for the School of Chemistry, Clare Murphy (pictured above left), an atmospheric chemist looking at Sydney's air pollution, and Danielle Skropeta (pictured above centre), who has dedicated her career to the discovery and development of new drugs inspired by nature, were promoted to Associate Professor.  

Associate Professor Skropeta, who is also coordinating UOW’s new Bachelor of Pre-Medicine, Science and Health, said she had always had an interest in chemistry and was inspired to pursue it as a career with the encouragement of a passionate high school science teacher. 

“As I went through university, all of the lecturers were male. I would often question ‘where are all the women’? Then one day I realised that instead of complaining about it, I could try to be part of the solution and set out on the path to academia.” 

UOW has proud history of supporting women in chemistry. Professor Margaret Sheil, now Provost at the University of Melbourne, was promoted to Professor in 2000 while at UOW, making her the first female to receive the title in Australia. 

The recent round of academic promotions at UOW saw a number of female academics promoted across all levels, with a success rate of 80 per cent, which is above the university wide average.

This includes three distinguished female academics working in the STEM disciplines that were promoted to Professor level. 

The trio were: Geochronologist Zenobia Jacobs, who in December was awarded an ARC Future Fellowship of more than $946,000, the largest awarded in 2015, to continue her research into the evolution of early humans; emerging technologies expert Katina Michael; and Jiazhao Wang, an engineer developing next generation batteries for clean energy storage.

The success follows the news that UOW had been recognised as one of the best workplaces in Australia for gender equality according to the Federal Government’s Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA). 

It also comes after an announcement in September that UOW would be one of the first universities in Australia to take part in a new program to help further the careers of women in the sciences.  

All successful Professor and Associate Professor female promotion candidates in the latest round: