The Challenges for Gender Equity and Women in Leadership in a Distributed University in Regional Australia

Janelle Thomas, Cate Thomas and Kirsty Smith
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Janelle Thomas: Faculty of Science, Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga, NSW 2678, Australia
Cate Thomas: Faculty of Science, Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga, NSW 2678, Australia
Kirsty Smith: Faculty of Science, Charles Sturt University, Bathurst, NSW 2795, Australia

Social Sciences, 2019, vol. 8, issue 6, 1-9

Abstract: The barriers to women’s achievement and career progression in the higher education sector have been well researched. It has long been acknowledged that career breaks for child-rearing, and women’s self-beliefs about their abilities can impact negatively on their careers, and many programs and policies have been implemented to redress these around the world. This article is focussed around a regional Australian university, with multiple campuses distributed over 1000 km across two states. Courses, schools, and work teams are often spread across multiple campuses, and travel between campuses is sometimes a necessity; one that is time-consuming and requires time away from family. For some women, travelling is not possible due to family and other commitments or constraints. This paper explores how working in a regional university, with distributed campuses, has an additional impact on women’s career progression. Through auto-ethnographic accounts of four female staff members, we explore the intersection of gender and location through case studies of personal experiences, investigating the effects that distance and travel limitations can have on participation in work team and networking events, access to professional development opportunities, and career progression within the institution.

Keywords: gender equity; distributed university; case study; career progression; women; distance; work travel; intersectionality (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A B N P Y80 Z00 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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