Research Newsletter issue 2 April 2018

WOMAN IN RESEARCH
It is not an easy thing to be an emerging femaleresearcher
in a male-dominated field. It has been
a man world for years; the playground is not level
instead it is bumpy and warped but I am determined
to succeed. I am among the few emerging femaleresearchers
who are enjoying and excited to take
up the challenge because of the tremendous
support I am getting from other female-researchers
surrounding me. It takes a lot of courage,
determination, commitment, perseverance and hard
work for a female researcher to be recognised and
your work to be appreciated. I must admit that it
is quite challenging because you have to work ten
times more for you to be acknowledged unlike your
male-researcher counterparts.
To proof that Research field is still dominated by
male-researchers (though marked strides are being
taken to close that gap) is that at the institution
where I am working as a Research Fellow; we were
11 Research Fellows and out of 11 only two were
females. Unfortunately the other female Research
Fellow quitted and I was and I am the only female
Research Fellow left working with 9 male-Research
Fellows. This became my first challenge I experienced
to be the only female among males. This created fear
in me and the environment was intimidating and I
had to prove myself that research had nothing to do
with gender it was only a question of perception. I
am attached to the Faculty of Education, Finance
& Management – a very large Faculty where I am
mandated to work with more than 30 academics. Out
of more than 30 academics, 5 are PhD holders, out of
5 only one is a female. These statistics prove again
that Research is still viewed as complex and still
controlled by men. However, steps are being taken
to engage women academics in research.
With the support I am getting from other femaleresearchers
in leadership, I have a different story to
tell. There are generalised sentiments that women
in leadership are difficult and insensitive to their
employees as compensatory behaviour because it is
claimed that they think that colleagues undermine
and despise them because they are women leaders. I
personally have not encountered that challenge from
my female-leaders.
As an emerging female-researcher, I did not know
where to draw the line to start the ball rolling. Where
I was posted there was no one who could help me
sing the song I was assigned to sing. My female-
Research Director knew very well that I was stuck and
to my amazement, she chipped in and grabbed me
by her hand and started to walk the journey together.
I was sent to different research-related workshops to
be groomed and grounded. Through her guidance I
started publishing and organising workshops for my
colleagues too. She gave me an opportunity to attend
International Research Conferences in and beyond
the South African borders. I am talking of women in
leadership in my field. The female leaders and other
female academics I work with don’t have the pull
her down syndrome instead there is team spirit. The
male academics I am working with are supporting
me, they have accepted me and are really proud of
me that there is change in our Campus because of
my presence.
When you talk of research, some people begin to
fear because it was a preserve for only a few elite/
academics especially men. It was a challenge I faced,
I wanted to change that perception but I could
not do this alone. I engaged my female-research
Director and she advised me to run a workshop on
demystifying research. We organised a three-day
workshop and invited external facilitators to unpack
it. It was tremendously successful and my colleagues
slowly but surely started enjoying research. For
this year only the Research Directorate supported
and funded more than twelve academics from our
Campus to go and attend big International Research
Conferences organised by some local universities.
That is why I said I have a different story to tell, life
at work was supposed to be difficult but because of
people surrounding me and who believed in me that
I was competent do it and had earned it, I did not
face resistance from some men and women who do
not perceive that women can do it right.
Their support gave me the zeal to work harder for
the betterment of our Campus and subsequently our
Institution. Now I need to be confident and perform
my duties to the best of my ability knowing that I
have five senses just like any man so why should
I allow the environment to intimidate me? Ability
16