SCISIPBIO: Partnering Through It: Building a Research Base for Dual-Career Academics

University Of North Carolina At Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill NC

Investigators

Abstract

This research project will provide a comprehensive analysis of universities' dual-career policies and practices and will generate resources for increasing the representation of women and minorities in science. With more than one-third of US-based academic researchers being in personal relationships with other academics, recruitment and retention of top talent depends upon universities meeting the dual-career needs of researchers. This challenge is especially important for diversifying the scientific workforce, as prior studies have pinpointed problems with academic appointments as a major contributor to the leaky pipeline causing attrition of women and minorities in biomedical and STEM fields. The project will develop evidence-based guidance for university administrators and critical resources for dual-career researchers in order to support greater inclusion of women and minorities in scientific careers. These objectives will be met through a rigorous research project designed to produce new empirical knowledge about dual-career policies, their application, and perceptions of them. Specifically, the project has three aims: (1) assess researchers' perceptions of dual-career academic job searches and the effects of university partner-hire policies upon research productivity and career advancement, (2) document the formal mechanisms used by universities to support dual career hires, and (3) establish innovative resources for the larger academic community to visualize and share information about universities' dual career policies and practices. These aims will be accomplished through a mixed-methods approach that includes a quantitative online survey of US based dualcareer academic researchers' perceptions and employment decisions at critical transition points in their careers, qualitative content analysis of the dual-career policies of all 131 R1 ("very high research activity") universities in the US, and the publication of an online "scorecard" of the dualcareer-friendly status of all R1 US universities, along with an accompanying report for university officials and academic associations. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.