Women among newly hired physics faculty

Abstract

In May, we noted that the percentage of women among physics faculty members reached 14% in 2010. The 14% is a new high—the continuation of a trend seen since we began measuring these data in 1998 when it was 8%. This growth in women's representation is seen at all levels of the professoriate—from instructors through full professors. In terms of sheer numbers, though, it is the women hired as assistant professors driving the increase. In the table, we highlight the percentage of newly hired faculty members who are women. The percentage of women among newly hired full professors increased quite a bit in 2010; this is an artifact of the lower number of male full professors hired in 2010 (which was the first year we collected data after the recession of 2008). In October, we will look at the proportion of physics departments with women faculty members. If you have any questions or comments, please contact Susan White at the Statistical Research Center of the American Institute of Physics (swhite@aip.org).