Gender demographics of departmental seminar speakers reflect gender disparities of faculty hosts

Hutto, Rachel; Voelker, Lisa; O’Connor, Jacob J.; Lin, Lucy H.; Mesa, Natalia Fortich; Rusch, Claire

doi:10.1186/s43031-022-00063-0

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 48 publications

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“…Informal networking is critical for success in academia: it plays a key role in professorial hiring and reputation building ( Van den Brink and Benschop, 2013). Exclusion from networking opportunities by academic gatekeepers, including academic seminar invitations from faculty and seminar organizers, can disproportionally affect individuals that are part of underrepresented groups in academia (Van den Brink and Benschop, 2013;Nittrouer et al, 2018;Hutto et al, 2022). In line with this, the most common code among seminar speakers regarding the value of seminars was faculty professional development such as networking.…”

Section: A Loss Of Professional Networking Opportunities and Academic...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Perceptions of invited seminar speakers and seminar organizers across university biology departments in virtual formats

Heim,

Hutto

2023

Front. Educ.

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Research seminars are a staple within biology and other science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) departments across academic institutions. During the COVID-19 pandemic, academic institutions across the U.S. had to rapidly transition courses, research programs, and other events from in-person to virtual environments—and departmental research seminars were no exception. We explored the perceptions of biology department seminar speakers and organizers regarding the benefits and challenges they experienced in the virtual format. We asked three primary research questions: (1) What challenges and benefits do invited seminar speakers in biology departments perceive regarding presenting seminars in the virtual environment? (2) What challenges and benefits do organizers of biology department seminars perceive regarding organizing seminars in the virtual environment? (3) How did biology department seminars change during the transition from an in-person to virtual format? In total, 39 seminar organizers and 90 seminar speakers completed surveys focused on their perceptions of virtual seminars. Using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis, we found that numerous benefits and challenges are perceived by seminar speakers and organizers regarding virtual seminars. Speakers and organizers perceived similar benefits of virtual seminars including accessibility and diversity, while perceived challenges included the loss of professional networking opportunities and academic community. There was overwhelming consensus from speakers and organizers alike that virtual departmental seminars are professionally and academically valuable. However, while speakers’ chief motivator was in furthering their own networks, research collaborations, and research visibility, organizers primarily valued their own students’ or trainees’ career development as well as their own departmental community. Together, these findings demonstrate the potential benefits of continuing virtual seminars outside of the context of the COVID-19 pandemic from an equity perspective while also highlighting issues that must be addressed by organizers and attendees to ensure seminars retain their value.

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Section: A Loss Of Professional Networking Opportunities and Academic...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Perceptions of invited seminar speakers and seminar organizers across university biology departments in virtual formats

Heim,

Hutto

2023

Front. Educ.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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The complete guide to hosting a guest speaker

Seals

2024

Advances in Physiology Education

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The ability to effectively host a guest speaker is an important but underemphasized aspect of career development in the physiological and broader biomedical sciences. Currently, there is scant information available to guide early-career scientists through this multi-faceted, subtlety-filled process. In this Personal View on Training and Mentoring, I first describe the importance and benefits of hosting visiting speakers. I then discuss the many considerations involved in selecting an appropriate speaker and how to formulate the invitation to present. The key activities involved in planning and preparing for a speaker's visit are described next, including information that must be obtained from the speaker, the logistics of travel and lodging, constructing an effective itinerary, food/meals, and how the presentation will be advertised. I then delve into the essential components of host responsibilities during the visit: best practices for introducing speakers, other hosting duties associated with the presentation, tips for enhancing trainee interactions with the speaker, and keys to properly completing the visit on the right note. I next discuss events occurring after the visit, including speaker expenses, reimbursements, and honoraria. Lastly, the distinct aspects of virtual visits (i.e., remote presentations and meetings) compared with in-person visits are noted. Overall, this viewpoint is intended to provide a comprehensive guide to successfully hosting a guest speaker that should help advance the professional development of students, postdoctoral fellows, and other early-stage investigators.

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Gender demographics of departmental seminar speakers reflect gender disparities of faculty hosts

Cited by 2 publications

References 48 publications

Perceptions of invited seminar speakers and seminar organizers across university biology departments in virtual formats

Perceptions of invited seminar speakers and seminar organizers across university biology departments in virtual formats

The complete guide to hosting a guest speaker

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