Gender disparities in colloquium speakers at top universities

Abstract

Colloquium talks at prestigious universities both create and ref academic researchers’ reputations. Gender disparities in colloqui talks can arise through a variety of mechanisms. The current st examines gender differences in colloquium speakers at 50 pre gious US colleges and universities in 2013–2014. Using archival d we analyzed 3,652 talks in six academic disciplines. Men were m likely than women to be colloquium speakers even after controll for the gender and rank of the available speakers. Eliminating al native explanations (e.g., women declining invitations more of than men), our follow-up data revealed that female and male ulty at top universities reported no differences in the extent which they (i) valued and (ii) turned down speaking engageme Additional data revealed that the presence of women as colloqui chairs (and potentially on colloquium committees) increased likelihood of women appearing as colloquium speakers. Our d suggest that those who invite and schedule speakers serve as g der gatekeepers with the power to create or reduce gender dif ences in academic reputations.