Women's Career Development: The Lived Experience of Canadian University Women Presidents

As of July 2011, the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC) reported 17 of Canada’s 95 universities were led by women. While this represents considerable change from 1974, when Pauline Jewett became the first woman president to lead a co-educational Canadian university, progress for women climbing the educational leadership ladder to the office of the university president in Canada has been slow. The purpose of this qualitative research study was to describe the lived experience of Canadian university women presidents as they developed their career paths to the presidency. This was accomplished through an examination of the women’s own perceptions and experiences about the development of their careers specifically related to personal and professional opportunities and barriers, the role of gender, the integration of their work and non-work lives, and their advice to women who aspire to become university presidents. The participants included eight women presidents of Canadian universities and data were collected through individual, semi-structured interviews. The findings showed that each of the women journeyed through a unique path to the presidency, yet their stories shared common themes. Personal characteristics, family background, educational experiences, and mentoring relationships were identified as critical influences on their career development experience. Challenges stemmed from the struggle to balance career goals with caring responsibilities, cope with the inherent difficulties of the role of a university president, and navigate gender issues. Advice for women aspiring to become university presidents, included (a) advice based on personal development and (b) advice based on professional development.

Name thesis:degree_name

Doctor of Philosophy

Level thesis:degree_level

doctoral

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Higher Education

Grantor dc:publisher

University of Toledo

Year dc:date

2012

Author dc:creator

• Quinlan, Colleen

Contributors dc:contributor

• Meabon, David

• Canadian Studies
• Educational Leadership
• Gender Studies
• Higher Education
• Womens Studies
• women and leadership
• women and higher education
• women's career development
• women academic presidents
• canadian higher education

Statement dc:rights

• unrestricted
• This thesis or dissertation is protected by copyright: all rights reserved. It may not be copied or redistributed beyond the terms of applicable copyright laws.

Language dc:language

English

Repository record dc:identifier

http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=toledo1353006797

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:etd.ohiolink.edu:toledo1353006797