APSA Releases Report on Women in PS

APSA Releases Report on Women in PS Women’s Advancement in Political Science, July 2005

APSA has released a report, "Women's Advancement in Political Science," on the representation and advancement of women in academic political science in the United States. The July 2005 report is based on research, discussions and recommendations resulting from the 2004 APSA Workshop on the Advancement of Women, funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF). The report proposes next steps toward remedying the problem of women's under-representation in the profession including actions for national and regional professional associations, institutions, departments, and senior faculty.

Background

APSA was motivated to organize the workshop because of evidence of an alarming stall in the number of women entering the discipline and persisting through early years of faculty service to achieve tenure. With the support of a grant from NSF, APSA assembled more than two dozen social scientists from across the country to investigate the problem of under-representation and advancement of women political scientists in academe in the United States. During the two-day workshop in March 2004, the participants reviewed research, discussed problems, and framed corrective actions for the discipline.

Despite substantial gains at all academic ranks since the 1970s, women comprise only 24 percent of all full-time faculty in 2001, an increase of just 6 percent since 1991. The percentage of women assistant professors has stalled at about 35 percent over the past five years. Ironically, the overall increase in women political science faculty is largely due to steady growth in numbers of women at the full professor level. More and more women are now hired in part-time or non-tenure-track positions, while the percentage of men in these categories is declining.

The APSA Women's Advancement in Political Science Report describes the proceedings of the workshop and the resulting recommended actions. The body of this report refers to the research findings reported at the workshop, organized around four defining issues and the recommendations suggested by participants.

APSA would like to extend thanks to the researchers and participants whose work contributes solidly to this report gave generously of their time, energy, and professional insight in setting an ambitious agenda for our profession. APSA would also like to thank the National Science Foundation for generously supporting this important initiative.

Download the FULL report: Women's Advancement in Political Science, July 2005 (PDF/822KB)