La campaña «Soy científico. Vivo en tu vecindario» instalada en Gran Vía de Zaragoza por un mes.

The campaign «Soy científico. Vivo en su vecindario» from the University of Zaragoza (Uz) has been installed, for the fifth year, on Gran Vía, until March 9, to commemorate the International Day of Women and Girls in Science (11F) and advocate for the role of women in science, also breaking the gender gap and providing close references to girls and teenagers.

At this presentation, 11 researchers on behalf of the various University Research and Mixed Research Institutes attended, as well as 50 graduates from the Quinta de la Escuela Joaquín Costa, who continued the discussion at the Paraninfo restaurant in a «breakfast with scientists with scientists.»

The inauguration was attended by the Vice-Chancellor of scientific policy in USIC functions, Rosa Bolea; Minister of Employment, Science and Universities of the Government of Aragon, Claudia Pérez; and the head of the professional development area of the Iberaja Foundation, plus Santos. Mathematician Beatriz Rubio spoke on behalf of the 11 scientists who participated in the campaign and two students from the Joaquín Costa School.

This campaign, promoted by the union of scientific culture, commemorates 11F through large format photos of 11 researchers, taken outside the laboratory and engaging in daily activities, to provide real references close to citizens. Additionally, they aim to break counterproductive stereotypes that portray scientists as heroines, geeks, or with little social life, which can discourage students from pursuing a scientific vocation.

The campaign had the collaboration of the chemist specialist Josefina Pérez-antegui; Expert in physics and nuclear particles, Susana Cebrián Guajardo; Chemical engineer, Alicia Valero Delgado; English philologist, Susana Onega Jaén; Biochemistry and biophysics, Marta Martínez Júlvez; Agronomist, María Ángeles Ltorre Górriz; Specialist in chemistry ISQCH, CSIC-IUzar mixed, Elena cerró Lamuela; Physicist, Irene Lucas del Poo; Mathematician, Beatriz Rubio Serrano; Art history, Ascensión Hernández Martínez; and biomedical engineer, Esther Pueyo, among others.

The photos were taken by professional photographer Rocío Badiola, specialized in the world of fashion and beauty, who witnessed Marta Marco (2024), Chus Marchaador (2023), and Fabián Simón (2021-2022).

This graphic exhibit was born in February 2021 in an attempt to overcome the limitations derived from Covid-19, designed by the scientific culture unit in collaboration with the city of Zaragoza, the government of Aragon, the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (Fecyt) of the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, and for this edition, with the support of the Iberaja Foundation.

The initiative «Soy científica. Vivo en su vecindario» aims to contribute to the objectives of February 11, advocating for the role of women in science, breaking the gender gap, and providing references to girls and teenagers in the vicinity.

In this sense, the gender gap regarding the situation of women in research has been reduced in the last two decades but still persists, according to the «Study of the situation of women in research at the University of Zaragoza (2000 to 2021)», conducted by researchers Carmen Baras, Lina Maldonado, and María Asunción Beamonte, to have a map of the situation and a temporal evolution that helps the institution make strategic decisions to overcome research inequalities.

Regarding these data and the updates collected in recent years, women’s participation in research and development activities has been achieved for several years.

The total number of teaching and research staff in 2024 is 4,455, of which 2,240 (51.9%) are women, so out of 2,052 teachers, not counting the training staff. The 40% barrier, a percentage considered a reference in the discourse on equality, has been surpassed for several years, and in 2023, the percentage of 50% was exceeded for the first time.

This parity of women’s presence is also reflected in the number of students. In recent years, parity has been achieved in the enrollment of women and men in university studies, with 54% of students enrolled in university diplomas being women, compared to 46% of male students.

The presence of women is common or majority in all fields of study, except for engineering and architecture, where the current percentage of student enrollment is 26% and «does not seem to be evolving upwards.»

Although the percentage of students enrolled in master’s and doctoral studies decreases slightly compared to the enrollment in 49.8% of undergraduate studies and 49.3%, the presence of women in higher academic preparation is reaffirmed as parity at all levels, including those leading to a research career.

In all research macro-areas, women’s participation exceeds 43%, except in engineering and architecture, where women only participate at 33%.

Regarding the management of women in research, there is an upward trend but it is insufficient, as the percentage of women leading research groups does not reach 40%, remaining on average of 35%, although with differences between macro-areas.

Female leadership in engineering and architecture is at 31%, close to average, and it is in arts and humanities sciences where the participation of women as lead researchers is lower (22%).

In response to teaching and the career of female researchers, at the most basic positions, the presence of women is significant, but as they ascend to positions of responsibility, the scissor effect appears, so the percentage of women in the teacher body is much smaller than women in the early stages.

Therefore, in 2025, women represent 58% of assistant doctor contracts, 51% of total doctors or permanent working teachers, 47.5% of tenured teacher body, and 31% of total teachers.

Despite this, the study indicates that the gender gap in the highest ranking of university professors is decreasing: two decades ago, the percentage of female professors was 11%.

From these data on the professional career of female teachers and researchers, the glass ceiling index can be used as a leadership measurement tool, which measures the proportion between the total percentage of women and those occupying higher positions.

In 2025, the index is 1.67, still far from the utopian «1» that would imply there is no glass ceiling, although much progress has been made since 2010 when the index was 2.41.

The study also emphasizes the effect of motherhood on the promotion of an academic career. When there are no children to care for, women take an average of 4.05 years to move from doctor to teacher, while men take 4.8. However, if they have a child during the promotion, their time increases by 75%, approximately three years, while it barely increases by 37%, she said.

FUENTE