Abstract
In the last 20 years, the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research (MIUR) has enacted two major reforms and passed a number of parliamentary acts that have radically changed the Italian academic system, e.g., the role of the permanent researcher was abolished and different types of fixed-term researchers were introduced. So far, very little is known on the effects of these reforms on men and women’s career progressions. Using a unique dataset that includes information on the whole Italian academic staff, this paper aims to provide an overview of the changes that the reforms introduced in the academic system and compare male and female scholars’ conditions within the university. The focus of the paper is on the young cohorts of academics who work as researchers. The main finding is that, in a context in which the selection and recruitment processes are not exclusively based on merit, the «gender neutral» MIUR reforms are contributing to the reproduction of the female disadvantage.
Highlights
Los contenidos de la revista se publican bajo una licencia de Creative Commons Reconocimiento 4.0 Internacional (CC BY 4.0)
The gender differences in the Italian university are due to a combination of factors: gender discrimination the delayed entry of women in the university career, the cultural and structural obstacles that women face when entering a world that is mainly dominated by men, and the lack of specific policy interventions to support women’s careers (Bianco, 1997)
In the last ten years, the Parliament has introduced a number of university reforms that have radically transformed the characteristics of Italian academia
Summary
Los contenidos de la revista se publican bajo una licencia de Creative Commons Reconocimiento 4.0 Internacional (CC BY 4.0). Since 2005, the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research (MIUR) has enacted major reforms that have radically changed the Italian academic system, modifying the associate and full professors’ promotion processes, abolishing the role of permanent researcher, and introducing different types of fixed-term researchers (i.e. with a dependent employment relationship with a duration of three years, eventually renewable). The overall aim of this work is to analyse men and women’s conditions in the Italian academia, focusing, in particular, on the tenure and non-tenure researchers. After providing an overview of the legislative framework and discussing the MIUR reforms, we look at men and women’s condition within the university A publication by the Italian National Statistical Institute (ISTAT, 2001) has provided a detailed overview of male and female career patterns, documenting that the men’s careers are faster than women’s and the chances of making a career in academia are dependent
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