SWE - Spring 2008 - (Page 27) ISTOCKPHOTO pointed out that the retirement of full-time faculty members will also have a negative effect. In 1998, about half of 23,000 full-time faculty members between the ages of 65 and 69 would start retiring in the next three years. As Dr. Thomas pointed out, “The record number of faculty positions that are filled in large state university systems such as the University of North Carolina and California State University systems and at other institutions around the country suggest that these retirements are indeed taking place.” The “now-or-never years” for women in academia According to Cathy Trower, Ph.D., director of the Collaborative on Academic Careers in Higher Education (COACHE) at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education, “People began to see that they could no longer blame gender differences in terms of status and success in the academy on the pipeline. The playing field is simply not level. Women are penalized by having children; men are not.” Dr. Mason, as well as many others in the growing discussion about work/life balance in academia, came to the same conclusion. She has researched this issue for years. She and co-author Dr. Goulden wrote the landmark article “Do Babies Matter?” in 2002, which was followed by a University of California “Faculty Work and Family Survey” in 2003. After surveying men and women at all 10 University of California campuses, they found that the “make-it-orbreak-it” years for those headed toward tenure occur between the ages of 30 and 40, just when women who want to have children realize it’s now or never. “The message women get is they can’t do both,” she commented. A traditional academic career track complicated for women balancing are moving in the right direction. Ph.D.s will impact the global competitiveness and security of the United States. Scientists and engineers working in university research labs provide the innovation that hones the country’s economic and security edge. “In certain disciplines, namely science and technology, U.S. higher education cannot afford to lose any of its potential intellectual work force and desperately needs the best talent in research and teaching,” stated the report. Adding another concern, a report from the National Study of Postsecondary Faculty “It is a major loss to higher education when Ph.D.s choose corporate life over an academic career.” Gloria Thomas, Ph.D., Associate Director, Office of Women in Higher Education, American Council on Education Academia Adds an On-Ramp to Its Off-Ramp SWE SPRING 2008 27
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