Are radical measures a good idea to attract more women to your organisation? The technology university in the Dutch city of Eindhoven thinks so. In 2019 it decided to open all academic job vacancies exclusively to women. If, after half a year, no suitable female applicant was found, men could apply.
The Netherlands lags seriously behind most EU countries when it comes to the percentage of female professors. And for a long time Eindhoven University of Technology lagged behind even other Dutch institutions. The figures were startling: 12% of full professors and 16% of associate professors were women in 2017.