This makes me very happy, especially since the president of my post-secondary institution doesn't believe women can be CEOs: [www.edmontonjournal.com]
While some observers suggest the shift is no big deal, others say they are worried about what U of A president Indira Samarasekera calls a "demographic bomb" working its way through the system. The problem is no one seems entirely sure what to do about it.
"The presidents of the major universities are very concerned we are not attracting young men in the numbers we should," Samarasekera says.
"I got asked recently about special programs to get more women CEOs, and my response was let’s not worry about that because that will come in due course. The bigger worry is that we’ll wake up in 20 years and we will not have the benefit of enough male talent at the heads of companies and elsewhere." #indranooyi
I thought that women wanted to be viewed as aspiring actresses, married, sorority sisters, womens' studies majors, or any of the 24 types in the Amp app.... and I don't think executive was one of those types. #indranooyi
@Ipomoea: Look at it this way ... if you're an executive, then you're safe from one of those types hitting on you, since they don't have an Amp script to work with.
(♪♫"Always look on the bright side of life ..."♫♪♫) #indranooyi
But if roughly 70% of what she's speaking about has to do with women's issues, doesn't that mean that 100% of what a man speaks about would be on the topic with the same talking points for the same length of discussion? Or does the gap not work that way....? #indranooyi
I'm at work, so I can't watch the video, but I read this as 70% of the times she's brought in as a speaker, she's being asked to speak about being A Woman In Business, whereas a man would be asked to speak about...business.
@theKP: Inquiring minds want to know. If they made an app for tips for young professional women, like how to ask for a raise, I'd totally buy some Pepsi. #indranooyi
Girl Scouts did a similar thing to get girls interested in math and science- they started posting these "Girls Go Tech" banners on websites, with exciting statements about how science is fun and pictures of roller coasters and equations and stuff. But they got even the simplest equations horrifically wrong. I wrote them an angry letter- awesome message to send, that "girls can do science," and then negate it by getting the easiest physics wrong.
@jejune768: Oh my gosh, only 10% women!? In my grad program it's at least 30%. The absolute WORST I think isn't when male colleagues are arrogant, although of course that's lame as hell, but rather when they make weird, awkward, "harmless" comments about women in the sciences, or they just don't know how to act around them. Like when the head of my department told me "fix my hair" when he was taking a picture of our radio astronomy class.
@jejune768: I enrolled in a CS program only to watch the department head chase the three female professors into retirement or another program. Then the department lost its accreditation. Massive frustration.
@la.donna.pietra: I should point out that the department didn't lose its accreditation because it no longer had female professors; rather, 2/3 of the faculty were on sabbatical and massively underqualified graduate students were "teaching" classes with no support or guidelines from the rest of the department. ABET tends to get kinda punchy about things like that.
@morninggloria: I'd just ditch the website and air a streaming video of the Sex in the City movie. If you click on Carrie's Manolos three times, you're accepted!
I want to believe this is straightforward, but didn't I just read in the Times that business schools are experiencing enrollment difficulties because companies are cutting back on tuition reimbursement benefits? Women will pay cash to improve their situation; we already know women are more likely to undergo retraining and explore continuing-education options if it will help them advance. The bottom line is that business programs, especially evening programs, need to fill seats. I'm pretty sure they would take anyone who would pay tuition.
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@TheFormerJuneBronson: I think B schools might be experiencing other problems, or at least their students are. My roommate is an accounting major, and she talks about having an internship a lot. Not that business majors are the only discipline with big deal internships, but getting one with a major corporation seems a lot harder than it used to be.
This really needs to be expanded to all programs. With the President saying he wants us to recommit to science, I think technical schools like my alma mater need to work at drawing in women in chemistry, physics, biology, etc. If young girls see women entering these fields, it might provide the spark to get girls more interested in science and math in high school.
@NefariousNewt: I agree. I think that vocational/technical high schools are often overlooked by young women because the only programs that they're steered toward are the child care and hairdressing programs.
@NefariousNewt: Girls interested in math and science?! Pfft. Some school you went to. Don't you know that it's physically impossible for women to get enough blood to their brains to be REALLY smart, what with all those periods. Silly Newt...
@AthertonMerriweather: Didn't we just have an article on Jez recently about the calendar with women mechanics? That's precisely the kind of thing that is so easily overlooked -- the idea is that everyone has to go into a 4-year program. But somebody also has to fix the cars, and build the houses, and why shouldn't those people be women?
@NefariousNewt: I recently read an article about Lane Technical High School in Chicago and how it used to be a school that promoted trade jobs, but now it is all college prep. I'm not so sure that pushing college on every single student is necessarily the right thing. There should be no shame in having a technical career, and options should be available for both men and women.
@NefariousNewt: I agree that getting young women interested in the sciences is very important, but I think a more pressing issue is minimizing the loss of women from the pipeline at later points in their career. In astrophysics for example, almost half the undergrads are women (indicating that a ton of women are already interested and dedicated enough to major in the field), but there's a steady dropoff at the graduate and postdoc level, not to mention the tenured faculty level.
It's all connected, though. I mentor undergrads for this exact reason- it's all about creating an environment in the sciences where women can thrive, and outreach is a big part of that.
@silentrationale: My law school was certainly advertised for both genders, and to the extent of the school and administration, it was very female/LGBTQ/family friendly. I found that it was the STUDENTS who were hostile. I suppose turning the head doesn't always make the body follow.
@AthertonMerriweather: Yeah, but if she wears a business suit with pants, it is because she is mannish and insecure about her ankles. And if she wears a skirt suit, it is because she is loose.
Nighthawk (the former Okori Wadsworth) is headed back to DGUSA in November! was starred
Nighthawk (the former Okori Wadsworth) is headed back to DGUSA in November! was unstarred
@Anointynointy: It was freaking cold out today. I am wearing leggings under a really sharp knit wrap dress with tall boots. The corporate ladder cannot assail me for I am wearing LEGGINGS!
@tscheese: Or, as a college professor: business suit = business professor OR adjunct with rich husband who definitely doesn't need a raise this year; jeans = still deluded that she's one of the prisoners instead of one of the guards; everything else that we can afford = asexual feminist liberal hippie poetry-lover.
Cute skirt, slightly low-cut top: brand-spanking new girl who i will guarantee will get puked on and ogled shamelessly in the first 24 hours (it happens).
pants with scotchgard, and replacement blouse hanging up in a locker: seasoned veteran. if you rolf on her she won't even notice.
bright pants, permanent "You Better Not" face, long-sleeved dress shirt: Director. Living breathing deity. If she comes near where you are be on your best.
Nighthawk (the former Okori Wadsworth) is headed back to DGUSA in November! was starred
Nighthawk (the former Okori Wadsworth) is headed back to DGUSA in November! was unstarred
As an aspiring corporate-ladder- climber, all I really want in life is to one day have a partner who will actually share the responsibilities of home/family life, whether or not I ever have kids.
Seriously, I'm almost convinced I'll never procreate just because my career is so ultimately important to me right now. Well, that and the fact that I don't really like babies.
@tscheese: Well, babies have their drawbacks... I got into work late yesterday because my three-year-old daughter was sick overnight and I had had very little sleep. But then they're so darned cute!
@tscheese: Some people tease me because the SpaceHusband doesn't have a "real" job, he coaches hockey and does some part time work.
However, when the SpaceToddler came down with the face plague two weeks ago, he was able to stay home with him so I didn't have to burn all my vacation time. I consider myself to be very lucky in that regard.
@tscheese: Not liking babies is a pretty good reason not to have them. In this regard, though, I think we're polar opposites. I want to continue to work after I pop out some Little Comtesses, but I couldn't be less interested in a CAREER. I want to be passionate about my work, but I never want my job to be even on par with how important my family/social life is to me.
@tscheese: They do provide a good excuse if you've never gotten your shit together. My life is not "a mess" and my career is not "a failure." I'm a "mom" with a "toddler" and a "growing family" who is "in transition."
@LaComtesse: I'm in the same boat as you-I definitely want kids (someday, in the distant future)and I want to continue working, but my family will always be number one for me. This is why I'm a librarian-hours can be flexible and I get to read as many books as I want!
@Andalucian Chic: Question: what school did you go to? I'm thinking about applying to an MLIS program. I live with 3 librarians. Our apartment probably qualifies as a fire hazard.
@my cousin is an ape: I went to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. I did the on campus Master's degree/K-12 certification program in 2.5 years. They also have a well known online program, which is called LEEP. (PM me if you want to know more, I absolutely loved it and I have convinced several friends to do the program)
If it's not too rude to ask, does being a librarian pay decently? My interest is legitimate. I'm waiting to hear from graduate schools, but if I'm rejected librarianism (?) is on my list of possibilities.
@InCahoots: YAY UIUC! Well, it depends where you are. I can tell you that where I work, (a high school in the North Shore) I get paid the same as a teacher-very well. School salaries differ all over the state though-in East Central Illinois, for example, the salaries aren't as high as in the Chicago area. Public libraries pay significantly less than almost every other library field, from what I have seen. Academic/Special libraries generally pay well.
@tscheese: Me too. Kids are great (or at least that's what people keep telling me), but they are most certainly not for me. Not to mention that I'm getting troublingly old (25! Bring on the cardigans, cats, and an abundance of unnecessary doilies) to be single and childless where I live (good old Utah) - some people seriously seem baffled that I purposely chose what I have. Whenever I say I don't want kids, I'm bound to get a "Oh, don't worry - you'll come around!"
10/30/09
[www.edmontonjournal.com]
While some observers suggest the shift is no big deal, others say they are worried about what U of A president Indira Samarasekera calls a "demographic bomb" working its way through the system. The problem is no one seems entirely sure what to do about it.
"The presidents of the major universities are very concerned we are not attracting young men in the numbers we should," Samarasekera says.
"I got asked recently about special programs to get more women CEOs, and my response was let’s not worry about that because that will come in due course. The bigger worry is that we’ll wake up in 20 years and we will not have the benefit of enough male talent at the heads of companies and elsewhere." #indranooyi
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(♪♫"Always look on the bright side of life ..."♫♪♫) #indranooyi
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I'm at work, so I can't watch the video, but I read this as 70% of the times she's brought in as a speaker, she's being asked to speak about being A Woman In Business, whereas a man would be asked to speak about...business.
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But I agree that that was a stupid thing for the company to have done. #indranooyi
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I just checked and the only legal job in the entire multinational company is in Egypt and requires fluency in Arabic. Damn it. #indranooyi
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Props on physics though, I've got straight Cs in my physics courses... ick.
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[www.headsethotties.com]
Seems like just about every website has a headset-woman on it... They must make mad cash and garner massive respect!
01/21/09
You may now cancel your subscription to the Daily Cynic; thank you.
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It's all connected, though. I mentor undergrads for this exact reason- it's all about creating an environment in the sciences where women can thrive, and outreach is a big part of that.
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Boy I am glad I work in Daycare.
Rules of Workplace fashion here:
cute Skirt= Brand-spanking new girl. Doesn't know anything.
Pants with scotchgard= seasoned veteran.
bright pants, permanent "You Better Not" face: director.
01/21/09
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allow me to add tops to this.
Cute skirt, slightly low-cut top: brand-spanking new girl who i will guarantee will get puked on and ogled shamelessly in the first 24 hours (it happens).
pants with scotchgard, and replacement blouse hanging up in a locker: seasoned veteran. if you rolf on her she won't even notice.
bright pants, permanent "You Better Not" face, long-sleeved dress shirt: Director. Living breathing deity. If she comes near where you are be on your best.
01/21/09
Seriously, I'm almost convinced I'll never procreate just because my career is so ultimately important to me right now. Well, that and the fact that I don't really like babies.
01/21/09
Just kidding. I don't really enjoy children, either.
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However, when the SpaceToddler came down with the face plague two weeks ago, he was able to stay home with him so I didn't have to burn all my vacation time. I consider myself to be very lucky in that regard.
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LOVE.
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If it's not too rude to ask, does being a librarian pay decently? My interest is legitimate. I'm waiting to hear from graduate schools, but if I'm rejected librarianism (?) is on my list of possibilities.
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Repronormativity, I shake my fist at thee!