Young women scientists are gradually disappearing through the “leaky pipeline.” Especially during the crucial years for career advancement, caregiving responsibilities—such as childcare or looking after relatives—slow down emerging researchers. At the premiere of the new talk series “Science Lounge – What’s Shaping the World of Science,” ERN chairmwoman Karen Kastenhofer (ÖAW), together with phsycologist Stefanie Lietze, (Equal Opportunity Representative of IT:U Linz) and economist Sophie Achleitner (Momentum Institute) spoke with Alice Senarclens de Grancy from Die Presse about what measures are needed to help young women scientists escape the “leaky pipeline.”
The recent survey within the Elise-Richter Network among female academics found that universities lose particularly many excellent women who have already made significant progress but then leave academia for a variety of reasons. Among the difficulties cited are the workload and the extent of work that is common in academia. Geographic mobility is also a factor. It is often required but generally difficult to reconcile with family responsibilities and caregiving duties.
The full video of interview in german can be found here