6533b7cffe1ef96bd12582a4

RESEARCH PRODUCT

University Transitions and Gender: From Choice of Studies to Academic Career Development

Alícia VillarFrancesc J. Hernàndez

subject

Academic careerSemi-structured interviewIdentification (information)Transition (fiction)Mathematics educationPsychologySocial psychologyFocus groupEducationQualitative researchSocial influenceCareer development

description

Based on the results of the authors' research using a case study of a Spanish university, the sociological component of gender is an important factor in building transitions at university. When the authors refer to university transitions they are talking about two periods. Firstly, they refer to the transition of undergraduate students from upper secondary education. The authors detect differences in the choices of studies, in the identification of professional models and in the university admission process. Secondly, they refer to the transition from research grant-holders to teaching and research staff. They explore the construction of social expectations and representations that research grant-holders make during their transitions to teaching and research staff. These two transition points are connected through the gender component, because in both, the authors have found gender differences that shape the transitions to a type of discourse and of behaviour. Therefore, university transitions are a broad field of study from a gender perspective.

https://doi.org/10.2304/pfie.2014.12.5.633