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Suggested Citation:"FRONT MATTER." National Research Council. 1983. Climbing the Ladder: An Update on the Status of Doctoral Women Scientists and Engineers. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/243.
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Below is the uncorrected machine-read text of this chapter, intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text of each book. Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.

Climbing ache pacifier An Update on the Status of Doctoral Women Jell ll~l~W HI IN Engineers Committee on the Ec~ucation arch Employment of Women in Science anc~ Engineering Office of Scientific anc~ Engineering Personnel National Research Council NATIONAL ACADEMY PRESS Washington, D.C. 1983

NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the Committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance. This report has been reviewed by a group other than the authors according to procedures approved by a Report Review Committee consisting of members of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The National Research Council was established by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy's purposes of furthering knowledge and of advising the federal government. The Council operates in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy under the authority of its congressional charter of 1863, which establishes the Academy as a private, nonprofit, self-governing membership corporation. The Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in the conduct of their services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. It is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. The National Academy of Engineering and the Institute of Medicine were established in 1964 and 1970, respec- tively, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences. Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 83-60184 International Standard Book Number 0-309-03341-1 Available from: NATIONAL ACADEMY PRESS National Academy of Sciences 2101 Constitution Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20418 Printed in the United States of America

COMMITTEE ON THE EDUCATION AND EMPLOYMENT OF WOMEN IN SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING Lilli S. HORNIG, Chair . Executive Director, Higher Education Resource Services Wellesley College M. Elizabeth TIDBALL, Vice-Chair Professor of Physiology George Washington University Medical Center John A. ARMSTRONG Manager of Materials and Technology Department IBM Corporation Esther M. CONWELL Principal Scientist Xerox Corporation Eleanor I. FRANKLIN Professor of Physiology Edward. University College of Medicine Gertrude S GOLDHABER S.en~or Physicist Brookhaven National Laboratories Nancy C. AHERN, Staff Officer it, . . . 111 Dudley R. HERSCHBACH Professor of Chemistry Harvard University Shirley A. JACKSON Theoretical Physicist Bell Laboratories Vera KISTIAKOWSKY Professor of Physics Massachusetts Institute of Technology Barbara F. RESKIN Associate Professor of Sociology Indiana University David Z. ROBINSON Vice President Carnegie Corporation of New York Elizabeth L. SCOTT Professor of Statistics University of California, Berkeley M. Lucius WALKER, Jr. Dean, School of Engineering Howard University

PREFACE This is the fourth report of the Committee on the Education and Employment of Women in Science and Engineering and its second publica- tion to address specifically the status of women scientists and engineers in academic institutions. The present report updates an earlier study, Climbing the Academic Ladder: Doctoral Women Scientists in Academe, and . examines any changes in the status of women faculty between 1977 and 1981. Drawing on more limited data, it also considers their situation in industry. The Committee believed that another look at the situation, after four years, was needed for several reasons. The supply of doctoral women scientists and engineers grew sharply in the late 1970s. At the the numbers of women leaving graduate school had same time that the numbers of positions in colleges and uni women are affected disPro~ortionatelv by increased significantly, varsities had not. Whether ~ the relative scarcity of academic jobs needed to be examined. It was also of interest to determine whether the gains in the presence of women on science and engineering faculties noted during the mid-1970s had been sustained. The Committee wished to examine the extent to which salary differentials observed in earlier studies had narrowed or perhaps disappeared for men and women with recent doctorates. Finally, the status of doctoral women scientists and engineers in industry needed to be reviewed. Data for the report were obtained primarily Doctorate Recipients and Survey of Earned Doctorates conducted by the National Research Council under contract with four federal agencies. from the Survey of Financial support for this study was provided by the Ford Founda- tion and is most gratefully acknowledged. Mariam Chamberlain and Gladys Chang Hardy, who served successively as the Foundation's staff officers, were especially helpful. The IBM Corporation generously awarded a supplemental grant for an analysis of women scientists in industry which appears in Chapter 5 of this report. A. N. Scallon's assistance at IBM is noted with thanks. v

Since its inception the Committee has been chaired by Lilli S. Hornig, Executive Director, Higher Education Resource Services, Wellesley College. For this and each of the Committee's previous reports, Nancy C. Ahern served as staff officer. Judith F. Vassalotti as secretary to the Committee typed the text of this report and prepared the numerous tables and figures. William C. Kelly, formerly Executive Director of the CHR and now Executive Director of the Office of Scientific and Engineering Personnel, has contributed advice, editorial comments, and much time and wisdom to each of the Committee reports. We take this opportunity to express particular thanks to him. V1

CONTENTS INTRODUCTION . SUMMARY OF FINDINGS . . CHAPTER 1 FACTORS AFFECTING THE SUPPLY OF DOCTORAL WOMEN SCIENTISTS AND ENGINEERS Historical patterns and their reflections Scientific ability . . . . . . . . . . . Trends in math and science preparation in Trends in graduate education CHAPTER 2 THE SUPPLY OF WOMEN DOCTORATES Minority women in science . . Institutional origins . . . . . Age at Ph.D. . ~ . . . . . . . . Graduate school support patterns Predoctoral employment . . . . Marital status . . . . . . . . Plans after the Ph.D. . . . . Labor force participation . . . CHAPTER 3 POSTDOCTORAL TRAINING Reason for taking a postdoctoral appointment Marital status and postdoctoral patterns Host institutions . . . . Postdoctoral stipends . . . CHAPTER 4 WOMEN SCIENTISTS AND ENGINEERS IN ACADEME Academic vs. nonacademic employment . . . Full-time and part-time employment . . Numbers of women faculty . . . . . . . . Sex distribution of faculty appointments Off-ladder positions . . . . . . . . . Hiring and promotion of junior faculty Tenure decisions . . . . . . X111 XV 1. 1 1.1 1.3 1.5 1.7 2.1 2.2 2.2 2.3 2.9 2.10 2.10 2.11 2.14 . . . . . . 1 3.2 3.6 3.6 3.10 4.1 4.1 4.? 4.5 4.5 4.8 4.8 4.14

Administrative positions Faculty salaries ~ Geographic mobility Conclusion . CHAPIER 5 DOCTORAL WOMEN IN INDUSTRY Increase in employment of female Ph. D.s . Growth of Ph.D. personnel Job choices for recent women doctorates . byte of position held Salaries CONCLUSIONS . . RECOMMENDATIONS APPENDICES s . REFERENCES 4.17 4.21 4.24 4.24 c r ~ ~ . ~ 5.1 5.1 5.3 5.3 5.5 . . . V111

LIST OF TABLES page 1.1 Growth in baccalaureate degrees to women in science and engineering fields, 1960-1980 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.6 1.1A Trends in proportions of baccalaureate degrees earned by women in selected humanities fields and education, 1960-1980 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.8 1.2 Persistence and attrition of women from the science and engineering educational ladder . . 1.3 Parity trends for Ph.D.s by broad field, 1970 and 1980 2.1 Number of science and engineering doctorates awarded by sex and field, 1970-1981 . . . . . . 1.12 2.1A Number of science and engineering doctorates awarded in 1980 by sex, racial-ethnic group, and field . . . . 2.6 2.2 Percent of science and engineering doctorates awarded to men and women from highly rated departments, for selected fields, 1970-1980 . . . . 2.3 Percent of 1977 and 1981 science and engineering Ph.D.s who were married at receipt of the doctorate, by field and sex e · ~ · ~ · - · · · · ~ ~ · · ~ · ~ ~ 2.4 Employment prospects at time of receipt of the doctorate by field and sex, 1980 science and engineering Ph.D.s . 2.5 Percent of 1980 science and engineering doctorates planning academic and industrial employment following receipt of the Ph.D. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Number and percent of women doctoral scientists and engineers in the labor force by field, 1981 . 1X .7 2.10 2~12

Number and percent of 1980 science and engineering doctorates planning postdoctoral appointments by field and sex ~ · ~ · ~ · ~ · · · e - ~ ~ 3~2 Reason for taking a postdoctoral appointment r 1980 doctorates in selected science fields by sex . . . 3.3 3.4 Status of postdoctoral appointment at time of receipt of PA n he Fi ~1 H end ~x. 1980 science and engineering Ph.D.s . . . 3.4 Percent of 1972 Ph.D. recipients who held long-term postdoctoral appointments by sex and marital status 3.5 Geographic limitations as a factor in taking a postdoctoral appointment, by sex and marital status, 1978 science and engineering Ph.D.s . . . . . . . 3.6 Host institutions for 1980 Ph.D.s with definite postdoctoral appointments, by sex and field . . Full-time and part-time employment of doctoral scientists and engineers in academe by field and sex, 1981 . 4.2 Increase in doctoral scientists and engineers in faculty positions by R&D expenditures of institution and sex, 1977-1981 . . . . . . . . 3.7 4.3 Number and percent of women doctoral scientists and engineers in faculty positions at 50 leading institutions by field, rank, and sex, 1977 and 1981 . . . 4.4 Number and percent of doctoral scientists and engineers in academe at rank of instructor/lecturer, by field and sex, 1977-1981 . . . . . . . . . ~ ~ . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.9 4.10 4.5 Number and percent of women doctoral scientists and engineers in selected positions in academic institutions by R&D expenditures of institution, 1977-1981 . . . . . . 4.11 Percent women among doctoral scientists and engineers in junior faculty positions by field, 1981 . . . 4.6A Percent of assistant professorships that are off-ladder positions, for male and female doctoral scientists and engineers, 1981 . . 4.12 x

4.7 4.8 4.10 Tenure status of science and engineering faculty at 4-year colleges and universities by rank and sex, 1977 and 1981 4.16 Elapsed time from Ph.D. to tenure for doctoral scientists and engineers in faculty positions by R&D expenditures of institution, field, and sex, 1981 . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.9 Number of doctoral scientists and engineers in academic administration, by R&D expenditures of institution, Ph.D. cohort, and sex, 1981 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Median annual salaries of doctoral scientists and engineers in faculty positions at 4-year colleges and universities by field of employment, rank, and sex, 1981 · ~ ~ · ~ · ~ · ~ ~ ~ · e · ~ · ~ · ~ · Percent doctoral women employed in industry and percent available, 1981 . 5.2 Percent of Ph.D. graduates planning industrial employment following receipt of doctorate by sex for selected fields 5.3 Percent of doctoral scientists and engineers in industry whose primary work activity is management, 1973, 1977, and 1981 . . . 4.19 4 20 4.22 5.2

LI ST OF FI CURES 2.1 Percent of science and engineering doctorates granted to women by field and decade, 1920-1979 . . . 2.2 Median age at Ph.D. by field and sex, 1981 science and engineering doctorates page 3.1 Percent of new Ph.D.s planning postdocs, 1972-1980 3.2 Postdoctoral stipends in two fields by sex, 1981 4.1 Percent distribution of doctoral scientists and engineers by employment sector and sex, 1981 4.2 Faculty rank distribution of doctoral scientists and engineers by R&D expenditures of institution and 4.3 Promotions of doctoral scientists and engineers in junior faculty positions between 1977 and 1981 4.4 Tenure status of associate professors by sex, for selected fields of science and engineering, 1981 5.1 Primary work activities of doctoral scientists and engineers in industry, 1981 . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2 Median salaries of doctoral scientists and engineers in industry by cohort and sex, 1981 . . . . 4.18 5.4

INTRODUCTION The Committee's first report, Climbing the Academic Ladder: Doc- toral Women Scientists in Academe (1979), explored the status of women in faculty, postdoctoral, and advisory posts. Women scientists were found to be concentrated in the lower ranks and in off-ladder positions, were typically paid less than their male colleagues at the same rank, and were less likely to be awarded tenure. A subsequent report, Career ~lltrom=.~ i n ~ Matched Sample of Men and Women Ph.D.s: An Analytical Report (1981), indicated that these differences remain even when men and women are closely matched by education, experience, and type of employ- ment. The latter study also revealed that the disparities in pay and advancement are not explained by what are traditionally considered im- portant factors--the perceived greater restraints on career mobility or greater likelihood that women have in the past interrupted their careers for child-rearing. Since 1977--the survey year on which the first report was based-- an additional 13,000 doctoral women scientists and engineers have joined the labor force, bringing their number to 41,000 of a total of 341,000 for both sexes. The characteristics of the new entrants and their effect on the overall status of women in academe and in- dustry are examined in the following analyses. Data sources The primary data on which this report is based are a pair of surveys conducted by the National Research Council. Copies of the questionnaires are provided in Appendices A and B. The annual Survey of Earned Doctorates is a virtually 100 percent survey of individuals receiving doctorates from U.S. institutions. With the assistance of graduate deans, information is collected at the time of receipt of the Ph.D. concerning educational background and postdoc- toral plans. These data are analyzed in Chapter 2, "Supply of Women Doctorates." . . X111

The follow-on Survey of Doctorate Recipients collects subsequent employment data from a sample of 65,391 scientists, engineers, and hu- manists who earned Ph.D.s during the period 1938-1980. The survey has been conducted biennially since 1973; this report relies chiefly on the 1981 survey results. Responses from individuals in the sample are weighted to yield population estimates. The estimates are in turn sub- ject to possible error due to sampling variability and possible non- sampling errors such as nonresponse bias. Organization of the report We will first look at the number of women in the science/engineering pipeline and recent trends in the proportion of college women planning careers as scientists. In Chapter 2, the characteristics of new doctorate recipients are described. Chapter 3 presents data on patterns of postdoctoral appointments for recent Ph.D.s. The comparative status of men and women faculty, including their rank, tenure, and salary profiles, is discussed in Chapter 4. Chapter 5 briefly examines the employment patterns of doctoral women in industry and whether the picture has changed since 1977. Finally, we summarize the evidence related to the status of women scientists and propose recommendations for improving their situation. x~ v

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS ~ Jo _' ~ ~ women have increased steeply, especially in those fields in which women have been most under- represented--engineering and computer sciences. (Table 1.1) Undergraduate science enrollments for · The persistence rate or probability of women going on to graduate school is low, relative to men, in mathematics and chemistry. (Table 1.2) . The numbers of women earning Ph.D.s in science and engineering have increased steadily since 1970 while the numbers of men have declined. The decade of the 1970s was the first in which the percent of doc- torates granted to women matched or exceeded the levels of the 1920s. (Figure 2.1 and Table 2.1) · In the 5-year period 1976-1980 similar proportions of men and women doctorates had received their training at highly rated departments. The sex differences were small except in mathematics where women were less likely to have received their degrees from prestigious institutions. (Table 2.2) · Except in computer sciences and physics, 15-20 percent more women than men were still seeking jobs. In general, a somewhat higher proportion of the male Ph.D. recipients reported having definite jobs at the time of graduation except in computer sciences. (Table 2.4) Women constituted 12 percent of all doctoral scientists and engineers in the labor force in 1981. (Table 2.6) · Similar proportions of recent men and women Ph.D.s planned post- doctoral study. (Table 3.1) About one-fifth meets--for more in the life (Table 3.4) of all postdoctorate have held long-term appoint- than 36 months. The holding ~ sciences, especially for married xv _ pattern is most prevalent women and single men.

Married women report that geographic limitations played an important role in their decision to take a postdoctoral appointment. (Table 3.5) As of 1981, there were approximately 13,500 doctoral women on U.S. science and engineering faculties, accounting for 10.9 percent of the total. Their representation is up from 9.3 percent in 1977. (Table 4.2) In the major research universities, women held 24 percent of the assistant professorships, but only 3 percent of the full professor- ships as of 1981. (Table 4.3) Women scientists are still twice or three times as likely as men to hold nonfaculty (instructor/lecturer) appointments. In most fields, the disparity has increased since 1977. However, relatively few (3,percent) of all doctoral women in academe hold such positions. (Table 4.4) In general, recent women Ph.D.s are found in junior faculty positions in proportions exceeding their availability in the doctoral pool. (Table 4.6) Promotions of junior faculty between 1977 and 1981 show wide sex differences: in the group of top 50 institutions (ranked by R&D expenditures), for example' three-fourths of the men, but only one-half of the women were promoted from assistant professor to a higher rank in those years. (Figure 4.3) · Overall, the proportion of women scientists who are tenured continues to be lower than for men. The sex differential in tenure for as- sociate professors, however, has narrowed since 1977, and, at the assistant professor rank, a slightly higher percent of the women have tenure. (Table 4.7) . The median "time to tenure," for science and engineering faculty who did achieve tenure, was 5.9 years for women and 6.1 years for men. In the physical sciences, however, awarding of tenure lagged for female faculty. (Table 4.8) · After controlling for rank, salary differences for men and women persist in most fields. The sex differences continue to be largest in chemistry and the medical sciences. (Table 4.10) The number of doctoral women scientists and engineers in industry doubled between 1977 and 1981. Still, women account for only 5 percent of all Ph.D.-level industrial personnel. (Table 5.1) New women Ph.D.s now plan industrial employment at about the some rate as men. (Table 5.2) xv

Women scientists and engineers continue to be less managerial jobs in industry. (gable 5.3) likely to hold Median salaries in industry are typically lower for female scientists, even among the recent Ph.D.s. For those 1-2 years past the doctorate' the salary gap amounts to $2~400. (Figure 5.2) xvii

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