Soaring Beyond Boundaries

Higher education systems in many countries are undergoing significant changes in response to variety of local, national, and international pressures. Among these, the shift from elitism to the provision of mass higher education; increased impact of internationalization and globalization, which are increasingly blurring national boundaries; increased competition among universities for limited resources to support higher education sector; the impact of technology and the knowledge economy; and the continuing quest educational for equity. While universities in many countries, both developed and developing, have worked diligently respond to various national and international demands, some issues persist; the continuing marginalization of women scholars. While many would agree that women, especially in Western contexts, have achieved significant accomplishments, research on academic women in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Canada, Australia and the United States highlights concerns and challenges that confront women students and scholars, albeit with varying degrees. In many of these countries, women constitute at least 50% of the undergraduate student population and some graduate programs. However, there are continuing disparities in the representation of women scholars within higher ranks of the academy ...