Being an early career academic: Is there space for gender equality in the neoliberal university?

This chapter presents a reflection on the role played by gender in shaping the career path of early career academics (postdoctoral fellows and lecturers). Data are analysed in the light of the changes characterizing academia in the last 20 years: changes that have been defined along the concepts of the neoliberal university, academic capitalism and managerialism. Some scholars warn that these discourses might hinder equality. This argument deserves further investigation, since in academia a gendered division of roles strongly persists. The contribution of this chapter lies in illustrating how gender and position along the academic career path interplay. This allows a better understanding of the challenges that lie ahead in the path towards gender equality in science.