Sir, - As Dr Reville notes in his article of August 3rd, it is "the way in which statistics are usually presented" that gives an impression. His use of statistics is no exception. Women are underrepresented in academia in Ireland no matter how one views the numbers. Certainly the gap is far smaller in the US than it is here; however, the notion that its narrowing in the US "just happened" is unrealistic.
As an American and an academic, I know that women in the US had to fight hard for their right to be considered equitably for promotion. They too had to cite statistics on the poor promotion record in order to make the public aware of their plight. Indeed, it wasn't until women came to be represented in equal numbers both on promotion boards and on interview committees in American universities that the number of female academics in the higher ranks rose. Further, as a recent statistical study in Sweden has shown, female academics have to perform better than their male colleagues to obtain research grant funds, primarily because very few women are members of the granting boards.
Undoubtedly, the ability to obtain research grants plays a major role in the "scholarly research parameter" which Dr Reville believes is of utmost importance for academic promotion here. Dr Reville does a disservice to the struggle of women in academia worldwide, but especially in Ireland, by taking the stance that the promotion of women to upper academic ranks "will undoubtedly happen here". Such advancement for female lecturers will take a great deal of effort. Increased awareness of inequality in promotion seems a good place to start. - Yours, etc., Dr Gloria Meredith,
Senior Lecturer, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, St Stephen's Green, Dublin 2.