Women in Chemistry in Australia: From a Slow Start to a More Promising Future

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Margaret M. Sheil shares her views on the role and growth of women chemists in Australia. Women have been rare in chemistry and even rarer in the ranks of leadership of academic chemistry and in the main professional association, the Royal Australian Chemical Institute (RACI). Prior to 2009 when Ada Yonath was awarded the Nobel Prize for Chemistry, the last women chemist to be awarded a Nobel Prize was Dorothy Hodgson in 1964. The author goes through several research works to know more about women chemists. She comes across many women chemists but feels sad that they were not given their due credit. She also researched that the highest number of female applicants is found in physical and structural chemistry and the lowest in inorganic chemistry. To help address the small number of successful women in this most prestigious ARC scheme, the Australian Laureate Fellowships, the ARC has added two additional fellowships in 2011.