Only 1% of Vietnamese professors are women

VietNamNet Bridge – The percentage of women who make scientific research is still very low in Vietnam: women only account for 11 percent of total PhDs and MAs, 5 percent of professors and associate professors. Meanwhile, only one percent of Vietnamese professors are women.

The figures were released by Deputy Minister of Education and Training Professor Banh Tien Long at the meeting with female professors and associate professors appointed in 2010 on the occasion of Vietnamese Women Day on October 20.

Meanwhile, Deputy Minister of Education and Training Nguyen Thi Nghia also said that the percentage of femal lecturers, professors, associate professors and PhDs at universities and colleges remains very modest and is still far below the potential.

In 2010, only 20.23 percent of appointed professors and associate professors were women. The numbers of professors and associate professors vary among different schools and regions, while most of professors and associate professors come from big universities with high prestige.

According to Associate Professor Hoang Ba Thinh, Director of the Institute for Population Research and Social Work, the numbers of women and men who have a university degree are equal, but the number of women who have post-university degree is much lower than the number of men with higher education.

Meanwhile, Professor Hoang Minh Giang from the Hanoi National University provided interesting information that in the last three years, 12.1 percent of high-class scientific research projects have been presided by woman scientists.

At the Vietnam Academy of Natural Sciences and Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences, the biggest scientific centres in Vietnam, there are no women among the leadership or heads of academies. Very few women hold the post of deputy heads.

In many cases, while woman scientists provide the main staff in scientific research at the state level,the projects are chaired by men.

According to Professor Pham Thi Tran Chau from the Hanoi National University, in addition to the low number of women with higher degrees, they have to leave their jobs sooner, therefore, the gap between the number of men and women scientists has become even wider.

Under the current laws, women retire at the age of 55 and men at the age of 60, i.e women retire five years earlier than men. This is also the reason why the Hanoi National University has no female professors in recent years.

Chau said that Vietnamese women lag behind men in terms of career development after they finish university and get married.

Giang also said that scientific research is a hard work which requires a lot of exertion and time. Meanwhile, women cannot spend all of their time on scientific research, because they still have family duties. In general, women have to make put more effort/work harder than men in order to achieve successes.

Scientists and educators have called for the amendment of the laws and give women more time and opportunities to devote themselves to scientific research. Women should be allowed to retire at the age of 60 instead of 55 as it is currently the case.

Professor Chau believes that the Government should introduce the policies prioritising women in post-university education.

VietNamNet, Hanoi moi