| Abstract: | Intended as an introduction and overview, this article previews the other contributions to the topic and places them in a general introductory context. The basic question is why women, who are not currently confronted with legal or overt discrimination with regard to entering and even thriving in academic careers, are still underrepresented in the academic world in Europe, particularly in the upper echelons of academic governance and power. Several possible explanations are given, in particular the failure of women to be prepared from an early age to be competitive in ways which boys are taught to take for granted, and their failure, not so much to engage in networking, but to penetrate the networks which count, most or all of which are in fact male dominated. Among the strategies which women may use to gain both presence and power in the academic world, the use of women's studies programmes is ruled out as being ultimately counterproductive. Likewise doubt is cast on the long‐term effectiveness of affirmative action programmes. Only remedies specific to the individual conditions of each country will be really helpful in aiding women to be more numerous in higher education, particularly in positions of power. However, in all the countries in question, women must be socialized so as to be willing to adopt behaviours conducive to academic success, and they must bring to bear the full resources of the social protection and welfare systems, all of which in the different countries of the Europe Region favour not only the progress of women, but the rational use of human resources. |
