EQUALITY GUIdE - KU Leuven

Chapter 2 ! Career paths: recruitment ! promotion ! dismissal 91
women (41%) than men (18%), the previous part of the survey showed that students
label the atmosphere at Ghent University as friendly rather than competitive. The study
‘Wetenschap tussen roeping en beroep’ 96 also postulates that the competition between
colleagues is one of the main causes of the early outflow at universities. The low percentage
of students who regard the competitive aspect of an academic career as a
disadvantage can be explained by the assumption that most students underestimate
the rivalry between scientists. Consequently, it only becomes a negative factor as one
climbs the academic ladder. Finally, the respondents consider neither the income nor
the lack of recognition as major obstacles.
The last part of the survey focuses on the representation of scientists. The respondents
had to indicate to what extent they agree with a list of (positive and negative)
characteristics. More than 90% of the respondents label scientists as passionate, enthusiastic,
intelligent, ambitious, immune to stress and efficient. As became apparent from
previous data, most students seem to believe that scientists earn high wages. The
image of the male scientist in an ivory tower no longer applies. Only 11% of the male
and 17% of the female students consider the practice of science as a purely male activity.
Furthermore, according to the respondents, scientists are anything but unworldly
since they keep abreast of topical matters. Scientists are also seen as leaders rather
than team-players. Notwithstanding the apparent unanimity about a scientist’s characteristics,
the male respondents prove to have a somewhat more positive image. Thus,
more male than female students assign characteristics such as flexibility and creativity
to scientists. Although female respondents have a positive image of scientists in general,
they describe scientists more often as boring, grave people with a high ‘nerd’
level. The most striking and significant gender difference is that 31% of female and
only 18% of male respondents believe that scientists have to sacrifice a lot of their
social life in general and family life in particular to succeed in their job. Quite contradictorily,
at least 95% of the respondents picture a scientist as a man or a woman with
children.
2.5. Conclusions and recommendations
2.5.1. General conclusions
The results of the survey largely correspond to the findings of the research on PhDstudents
97 and the study ‘Wetenschap tussen roeping en beroep’ 98 . In contrast to the
students questioned in the study ‘Wetenschap tussen roeping en beroep’, the students
at Ghent University believe that scientists earn high wages. Consequently, this is expe-
96
97
98
De Gier et al. (2001), op. cit.
Verlinden et al. (2005), op. cit.
De Gier et al. (2001), op. cit.