The playing field in academia: Why are women still underrepresented?

Women continue to be underrepresented in every stage of the academic career in many fields and they do not advance professionally at the same rate as men. A growing body of research in economics points towards social and institutional causes behind these inequalities and offers policy suggestions to address them. To discuss and disseminate recent developments in this area FROGEE together with CenEA and SITE hosted a conference in Warsaw on 21-22 June, 2023. It combined contributed sessions, invited lectures and policy discussions.

Results from ongoing research in the area were presented on the first day of the Conference (21 June). Here you can download:

(1) The programme of the first day of the Conference;

(2) Short biographies of the participants.

The second day of the Conference (22 June) began with two invited lectures by:

prof. Carlo Schwarz (Bocconi University): “Gender Gaps in Academia: Global Evidence over the 20th Century”

and

prof. Sarah Smith (University of Bristol): “Promoting diversity: Gender equality initiatives in economics”.

These were followed by panel discussions on policies and solutions aimed at ensuring fairness and equality at different stages of the academic career. Below you can download:

(1) The detailed programme for this part of the Conference;

(2) Short biographies of the participants and panellists.

The policy brief Lessons from the FROGEE Conference “The Playing Field in Academia: Why Are Women Still Underrepresented?” summarizes the main discussions and conclusions of the event.

The conference was organised as part of the FREE Network initiative FROGEE, supported by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida).

Photo by metamorworks, Shutterstock.com