Telling Women's Lives

Eric Gorzeman- Sexism In Science & Academia

Between the two NY times article, it is surprising the rampant amount of sexism in the science field. The number of blatant times that the women were obviously victims of the male-dominated science world is depressing, especially considering that women outnumber men in college and often perform better in college. It is also depressing considering that one of the best schools in the world, Yale, only had one women professor in the math department in its history in 2010. The system is enabled by the professors and mentors, instead of trying to break the mold, they seem to uphold the rampant sexism that is in place in the system. Excelling in the STEM-related field is difficult for man and woman as it is a difficult field, and women do not need the added pressure and “glass-ceiling” accompanying their already complex work. Breaking through a predominantly male field, much like women in the finance firm we read about earlier this year, seems to come with uncomfortable situations. The surprising subject of the second article, about how female scientist tends to get “hit on” by their supervisors, while male scientist it was their peers, is startling and uncomfortable. To be put in a situation where the boss is making advances is a lose-lose situation for the employee. Creating tension and diminishing trust on a team leads to employees often under-performing in their roles. The situation with women scientist at conferences is also depressing when these scientists are trying to present their research and work that they may have spent months and even years on, and instead of praise or advice or interest, they receive a sexual advance, is unprofessional, to say the least.

Getting into academia and excelling in an STEM-related field is a long and difficult journey for men and women alike. However, adding blatant sexism and discrimination into the mix is a sad reality of entering into such a male-dominated world. Hopefully, the STEM field can find ways to get rid of this blatant sexism in its midst.