LSE, Gender and Economic History

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LSE, Gender and Economic History

• Janet Hunter
• Economic History Department
• LSE

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LSE

• Commitment to gender equality at institutional
  and departmental level
• 2007/8
• Undergraduates 50 male50 female
• Graduates 46 male54 female
• Women 30 permanent full time academic staff
• Average starting salaries of male and female
  employees very similar

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Gendered Hierarchies

• Women employees more likely to be fixed term,
  non-career track, part-time
• Salary level disparities increase higher up the
  hierarchy (pension implications)
• Average basic pay across salaried academic
  employees not strongly differentiated by gender
• Statistically significant difference between
  women and men in number of increments awarded
• Starting salaries at promotion gender-differentiat
  ed (women may have to achieve more at lower
  levels to be promoted)

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Academic Employment, Dec.2007
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Professorial Numbers
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Gendered Hierarchies the Professoriate

• In 2008 women 21 all professors (inc. hourly
  paid/casual), and 18.4 full time professors
• This figure is not dissimilar to the figures of
  14-22 across top Ivy League colleges
• Women professors lower paid on average than male
  counterparts
• Undisclosed salaries above the disclosed
  professorial pay scale applying only to men
• Women take longer to get to the professorial
  level and proportionately older than male
  professors

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Economic History Department - Students

• Undergraduates
• Women c.30-40 registered EH undergraduates,
  below School average
• Graduates
• Women 32 applicants to taught degrees in
  2007/8, and 34.5 of those holding offers
• Under a quarter of applicants holding offers for
  the Research track degree were female
• The proportion of female graduate students in EH
  is considerably lower than the School-wide figure
• Figures similar to those of Economics Department,
  but lower than eg. Development Studies
  International History

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Graduate Applicants to EH Degrees
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Economic History Department - Staff

• Balanced at professorial level
• Women 33 all staff working in EH
• Academics
• If fixed term research staff are excluded no
  women in EH below professorial level
• The gender imbalance has worsened as the
  Department has expanded
• All staff in EH would like to see more women
  faculty

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Problem 1 Gender Imbalance among Graduate
Students

• Possible reasons
• Lack of understanding of nature of economic
  history at LSE?
• Perception of degrees as technical or
  econometric?
• Failure to attract students from history
  backgrounds?
• Absence of many courses on Britain?
• Non-vocational?

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Problem 2 Gender Balance among Academic Staff

• Possible reasons
• Fewer women at graduate level is related to the
  existence of fewer female academics
• International character of LSE, with higher
  international mobility of male academics?
• Perceived characteristics of EH at LSE (eg. lack
  of diversity) deter applicants from non-social
  science/non-technical backgrounds?
• Broad spectrum of geographical coverage and
  methodological range area studies
• Seniority of many lectureship applicants
• Nature of appointments system at LSE

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What should we do?

• Danger of perceptions becoming actual situation
• Gender imbalance at all levels produces a vicious
  circle
• How to market the diversity of EH at LSE without
  diluting our existing strengths?