Utah has one of the highest levels of gender inequality in higher education in the United States. For example, only 9.3% of Utah women over 25 years old have earned an advanced degree (higher than a bachelor’s degree), compared to 14.1% of men. It is unfortunate since education is associated with many positive outcomes, including financial security and higher quality of life.
Recently, the Utah Women & Leadership Project published two research briefs about the gender gap in Utah higher education from both quantitative and qualitative perspectives, which is the focus of this episode. Dr. Susan Madsen, Founding Director of the Utah Women & Leadership Project, is joined by Dr. Sojung Lim, an Associate Professor of Sociology at Utah State University and one of the authors of the reports, and Claudia Mendez Wright, a sociology doctoral candidate at Utah State University.