On the occasion of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science 2021, we would like to present an overview of the gender balance at the Faculty of Science of the University of Antwerp. The University of Antwerp has been implementing a gender equality policy for years, with the strategic action plan ‘Sustainable Gender Policy for Academic Staff’ approved by the Board of Governors in 2014. In 2018, an updated version of this report was approved, titled Gender at UAntwerp: Current Status, which provides an overview of the gender ratio across the entire university as well as within the various faculties.
In 2021, we take a closer look at the situation within the Faculty of Science to mark the International Day of Women and Girls in Science on February 12, 2021.
We begin by analyzing the gender distribution across the different departments of the Faculty of Science for both students and academic staff. Students are divided into three categories: bachelor's students, master's students, and PhD students. For academic staff, we distinguish between postdoctoral researchers and independent academic staff.
Gender Distribution at the Faculty of Science (10/2021) Data source: student data from BI, personnel data from DPO. The red line indicates gender balance. Departments/programs: BIO-ENG: Department of Bioscience Engineering (no master’s program) BIO: Department of Biology CHEM: Department of Chemistry PHYS: Department of Physics INF: Department of Computer Science MATH: Department of Mathematics ENV: Environmental Sciences program (master’s only)
Status categories: BA: Bachelor’s students MA: Master’s students DOC: PhD students POSTDOC: Postdoctoral researchers ZAP: Independent academic staff (lecturer, senior lecturer, professor, full professor)
During the 2020–2021 academic year, the gender balance among students was mostly equal in the bachelor’s programs in biology and bioscience engineering, the master’s programs in biology and mathematics, and the PhD programs in biology and bioscience engineering. However, in other programs, male students were predominant, especially in physics and computer science, where male students made up more than 80% of the population. The master's program in environmental sciences showed the opposite trend, with 65% female students.
An academic career at the Faculty of Science is still largely male-dominated. Even in departments where the gender ratio among students is balanced, the proportion of women decreases as we move up the academic hierarchy. The exact figures for the 2020–2021 academic year can be found in the table below.
Conclusion: On February 12, 2021, a significant number of female scientists were already working at our faculty. Nevertheless, it remains crucial to pay attention to these figures. Efforts must continue to encourage young girls to maintain their interest in science from an early age and to support women who aspire to pursue an academic career.
