The new campaign highlights gender inequality in STEM fields and celebrates real-world STEM female advocates.
It responds to gender equality as one of the key priorities outlined in QUT’s Blueprint 6, the university’s strategic plan: which also includes aspiration, inclusion, professional engagement and ethical leadership.”
“We wanted to highlight QUT’s commitment to gender equality and specifically creating more equity for women in STEM, a traditionally male dominated field,” BCM Managing Director Paul Cornwell said.
The campaign, for example, challenges the reality that only 28% of STEM workers are female.
It also highlights unconscious personal biases with messages such as ‘Picture a scientist. Did you picture a man?’.
To improve the progression and retention of academic women in STEM, QUT offers support through a multitude of outlets, including a program to create networks, remove barriers and biases, provide better access to leadership positions, and actively involve senior staff.
In addition to this, the university hosts workshops to improve organisational culture, provides career mentoring and training, and of the QUT Excellence scholarships awarded in STEM, 50% are offered to women.
An advocate for women in STEM and a former CEO of the Australian Research Council, QUT Vice-Chancellor, Professor Margaret Sheil AO, shared her vision and insights on this topic in a speech given at a previous QUT International Women’s Day event.
“We need to recruit more women, and improve their promotion and retention rates, if we want to eliminate the unacceptable gap between genders.
“We don’t have to wait around for the structural changes to be reformed before taking action. We need to take focused, direct action, even while we engage in concerted systemic reform,” Professor Sheil stated.
This campaign reinforces QUT’s commitment to improve gender inequality having been on the Federal Government’s Gender Equity Employer of Choice list since 2005, something few Australian universities have achieved.
“We’re very proud to have worked with QUT on this campaign and are excited to see new outcomes for women in STEM and for equality in the workforce,” Cornwell added.
