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A third of VUB professors must be women
The Free University of Brussels (VUB) is to introduce a quota system that will require one in three professors to be a woman. With 28% of its professors already female, it has the best female representation of an any Flemish university.
But more action is needed to get more women to the top of academia, VUB rector Caroline Pauwels (pictured) said in an interview with the newsweekly Knack.
The decision to introduce a quota flowed out of administrators’ realisation that they would fail to realise their aspiration of having 33% female professors by 2021. “We noticed that the percentage had only increased by one percentage point in the last 10 years – from 27% to 28% – so we will not reach our goal at this rate,” Pauwels told public broadcaster VRT.
She said she felt uncomfortable introducing a quota, but defended it as necessary to achieve more gender equality among the university’s professors.
It’s not yet clear how the VUB will apply the quota to reach its 33% goal. “You cannot do that in the blink of an eye; the right people have to be available,” Pauwels said. “We are now analysing our staff figures and examining what time frame is realistic; it could be four or five years.”
She added that more support measures were also needed to help women more easily advance to the position of professor.
Photo courtesy VUB
Comments
VUB should be really proud of their rector. There are so many improvements after she came. This new library, new buildings, support of scientists in other countries and women's place in academia! There is a big, positive change! Women are braver as they are never accepted by the establishment and they work their way up being better! Male administrators come with inner politics so they are afraid to change many things. Women are the left of university life while men represent the establishment, like tories! University is an organization left from the middle ages and hardly much changed in them. Now it is the time, with brave new people! Congratulations to Dr. Pauwels!