STEM Doctorates’ Career Trajectories: Intersectional Processes of Inequalities by Gender, Race and Field Contexts

• In Event: 4284 - Section on Sociology of Sex and Gender Refereed Roundtable Session
  In Refereed Roundtable 100min: Table 08. Gender in the Academy

Abstract

In contrast to the popular “leaky pipeline” model that focuses on gender with a simplistic “advancement/leakage” binary, this paper proposes to adopt a “career trajectories” framework that recognizes a variety of educational and professional paths at the post-baccalaureate levels. This paper argues for the need to elucidate the intersectional mechanisms by which female STEM doctoral students navigate departmental settings towards or away from STEM faculty careers in their professional development (PD). This paper accordingly suggests that we should examine STEM doctorates’ career paths not by gender and race separately but rather by the two intersectionally along with field-specific contexts, such as research opportunities, available career options, and PD practices. By identifying typical career paths for STEM doctorates and specifying the intersectional variations by gender, race and academic field together, the proposed career trajectories framework can better serve for telling us when and for whom STEM careers come to include more nonacademic options, in what trajectory stage career pathways divide for particular fields, and whom PD encourages more toward nonacademic, nonSTEM career choices.

Author

• Yun Kyung Cho, University of Wisconsin-Madison