Writer: Erika Gherman
Since its foundation in 1826, UCL has emerged as a symbol of reformism and inclusivity. In a time of great disparities, the university promoted progress by accepting students from different backgrounds and faiths, distinguishing itself from other UK educational institutions and the conservative society. 50 years later in 1878, UCL pushed this mindset further, opening its doors to a repressed but consequent part of the society. A community which, despite representing half of the population, was often erased from history, unrepresented, powerless and restricted from freedom: women.
UCL was one of the first UK universities to enrol female students on the same terms as their male counterparts, marking a turning point in the intellectual and social construction of society and academia. Since then, thousands of female students, researchers, and professors have roamed these hallways, each adding a stepping stone to science while facing challenges and defying conventions.
While celebrating UCL’s 200th anniversary, this revolution is still ongoing, with changes actively being made by the new generations to reduce the still-existing inequalities.
Women’s access to education in the UK began in 1868 in London, when the University of London’s Senate authorised female candidates to sit examinations across a panel of subjects. Although this initial reform did not lead to degree completion at the time, it proved to be a necessary démarche that yielded its first results 10 years later, when the first women were able to enrol and earn a degree under the same conditions as men.
However, the acceptance of female students by educational institutions was only the start of a long battle for recognition. Criticised for pursuing a career, stolen work, exclusion from leadership: those are only a few of the difficulties a woman had to overcome to complete her studies and to be acknowledged for her contribution to research.
Even in a field full of impediments, women created their own opportunities and, one step at a time, revolutionized science.
Spanning centuries and still ongoing, this transformation is one that each individual woman plays an essential part of, from the first two female students graduating with a BSc in1881 to some of the biggest researchers of today. One of the pioneers of science and women’s emancipation, was UCL’s first female professor in 1949, Dame Kathleen Lonsdale for chemistry. She is particularly esteemed for her use of crystallography and her nomination in 1945 as one of the first two women fellows of the Royal Society.
Through education women forged themselves an active place in the world and brought profound changes in science; with women came new perspectives and discoveries that built the knowledge we have today.
UCL recognizes the importance of gender equality in science for its evolution and stands out through its dedication to reducing gender gaps and supporting the ambitions of female students. Key actions taken within this scope include the annual celebration of Women’s Day,adherence to a gender equity programme; and compliance with the Athena SWAN Charter, a UK framework aiming to reduce gender inequalities in STEM fields.
Alongside the institution, its female scientists are first to take an active role in leading those movements.
That may be respected researchers, such as Dame Uta Frith, Emeritus Professor of Cognitive Development for UCL’s Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, and previous member of two MRC’s units affiliated to UCL. Renowned in the field for her research on developmental disorders such as autism or dyslexia, she is also a militant for women’s rights in academia, represented through numerous actions such as her co-founding of UCL’s “Women Network” in 2013, a social organization offering a space advocating for women’s empowerment.
Or it could be students who create societies to empower their female peers. Two visionary students, committee members of UCL’s Women in STEM Society, shared their own actions and the message they want to communicate. This society supports events ranging from relaxed socials for female students, to regular talks with guest speakers from different areas of STEM. Their aim is “to provide a platform for women in different STEM disciplines to network and be inspired by each other” according to the society’s events officer, Sun Yu. Their social media officer, Ayotenu Dosumu expressed the society’s desire to create a strong sense of community and to make career opportunities accessible to members. Both members made a point of women’s challenges and underrepresentation in STEM being their strongest drive in pursuing their roles. Ayotenu Dosumu emphasizes the inequalities met by women of colour in science, recalling the lack of Black STEM lecturers or students in her course: “Experiences like this highlight how isolating STEM spaces can feel and how important spaces like Women in STEM are”. The society makes it possible for all female students to find a role model in their career path.
Even after 200 years, UCL remains a pioneer of inclusion, following its foundation principles by encouraging positive change in the community. Through the support of students’ projects and the creation of safe and inspirational spaces for women, the university actively reduces gender inequalities. These actions led to certain disciplines, such as biology, reaching over 50% of female students. However, those advancements are not equally distributed, as subjects like engineering remain predominantly dominated by men.
Outside of UCL, the battle also continues with deep inequalities persisting across the UK, as only 27.6% of the UK STEM workforce is composed of women, according to workforce data, with only 17% of science professors being women. Those numbers highlight persistent gender gaps, even more pronounced for women of colour.
The under-representation of women in science brings much deeper concern, as it is one of the origins of scientific bias. In medical research especially, male bias has been recognised and discussed for years by many medical institutions. Healthcare doesn’t meet women’s needs due to insufficient understanding of diseases and symptoms affecting them, stemming from the lack of research done on women’s biology and health conditions.
The situation calls urgently for an increase in equity and training of female scientists. Female professors are critical contributors, preparing the new generations of students who carry the development of science.
In between the legacy of our predecessors and the future yet to be written, it is in the hands of today’s students to continue this revolution.
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